Family Reunion
by The1upguy
Summary: What happens when Spyro's biological parents return? Well it is not all wine and roses. **Rated T for very minor use of foul language** COMPLETE
1. Prologue

**So...I guess I'm not done writing about the purple dragon. There's a frickin' surprise.**

 **How would you react to a reunion between mother and child? That's an easy question... right?**

 **We'll see if you think that way later.**

 **Only a few weeks after the fall of the Dark Master, and the world has already begun to heal. However, there are plenty of other wounds that will take time. This story will be different perspectives on how the world reacts to a simple reunion between a dragon and his lost family.**

* * *

 **Family Reunion**

* * *

 **Prologue (Cynder - part I)**

The sounds of construction have filled the air for five straight days, but no one has complained about the hammering and the shouting of a thousand hard working Manweresmalls. In fact, hundreds of dragons actually moved back into the loud city in order to help with the rebuilding of their home.

Avalar was finally at peace, even if the damage to the war torn world was practically catastrophic and the noise to fix it deafening, the planet had finally found the quiet it needed.

Now, in one of the newest and more luxurious dwellings in Warfang, the reason the city still stands at all stares out the window to the Northern Gate.

"I can't believe this!" Spyro remarks excitedly, anticipating the moment the large door opens for an incoming convoy of nearly fifty dragons.

His purple eyes move away from the massive structure for a brief second, focusing to the only other thing he's looked at in the past hour, since hearing the incredible news from Terrador.

"Could it really be my family, Cynder?"

The scarlet red chest of the black dragoness beside him begins expanding and contracting rapidly, as Cynder can see the guards start the procedure to open the gate.

"I don't know, Spyro," she replies with difficulty, her mouth struggling to work, anticipating a reunion that could douse the only light in her life. The pain she has felt for almost a week begins consuming her, knowing what she has done in the past, and how she is treated by the dragons around here.

"I just hope I didn't hurt any of them."

Her fear-filled tone makes Spyro take notice, and quickly his paw has hers in a tight grasp.

"I told you...The Terror of the Sky caused all that damage, and _she_ is _dead_." His eyes never blink, showing the focus he now has is only for her. "You are _Cynder_ , the Hero of Avalar, and they will understand..."

Cynder pulls her paw from Spyro's grasp and quickly places it upon the small week old scar on her chest.

"Like they have here!" she cries, as this wound was delivered by an angry Earth dragon, and directly in the center of New Warfang's main square.

Hundreds of citizens watched with indifference as the Shadow dragoness was struck several times by a much larger opponent. No one coming to her aid except Spyro, whom had only left her alone for ten seconds.

Seeing her begin to shutter with fear, the purple and gold chested dragon grasps her tightly in his arms, then surrounds Cynder in a cocoon of his reddish-gold wings.

"Easy," he whispers in her ear, taking the chill of reliving the moment she thought she was going to die away, and replacing it with the warmth of his love. The same warmth that ended a one sided attack with prejudice and healed her injuries.

"You know I will never let anyone hurt you like that again."

Cynder knows he speaks the truth, as he has fought off several ambushes against the former Terror of the Sky. However, her shuttering increases, knowing she may lose her only protection.

"But what if _I_ hurt _you_?" Cynder replies, her voice even softer than Spyro's whisper.

The purple dragon opens his wings, allowing the light from a roaring fire to glisten in the green eyes of his love, as he lifts her quivering chin with a gentle paw.

"Never." he replies, but Cynder's paw is quickly up from her side, then rested upon the round nose of the hero of her soul. Her eyes fill with tears, as she has full knowledge of the city these dragon are coming from, as it was the first city destroyed by the Terror of the Sky.

"Spyro... what if one of the many dragons... _she_ killed... was a part of _your_ family?" the black dragoness retorts, her voice now skipping as she cries uncontrollably.

Cynder's feelings of fear are confirmed as Spyro's eyes show indecision and her crying becomes more intense.

"You will hate me too...and I will have _nowhere_ to go."

* * *

 **Well, Cynder is not looking forward to this reunion, I guarantee you that. There will be more to her story, as this is just the prologue.**

 **And I don't care if you think it's mean how Warfang is treating her, cause that, sad to say, is life.** **I mean what if a mass murderer killed your family, then you were told that person has been given a pardon to live the rest of their life in peace. I would not be happy, and would try to beat the crap out of that person any chance I got.**

 **There are others who will not be happy, and _mom_ will be chapter one, as this was the whole beginning idea to the story. Seriously, how does a mother deal with losing her child to his _mother_.**

 **Also, if you have an idea for a character whom would be influenced by this reunion, good or bad, I will try to make a segment for them. I will definitely be doing the thoughts of Spyro himself, Nina, his real Mom, and of course Sparx, but if you think of someone else I wanna hear it.**

 **Thank you for reading, and please review.**


	2. Little Brothers

**OK I lied...I said Mom would be first, but why would I do that. She comes later, when I've hooked you :)  
** **I also want to apologize. I have been a bit off my game, but I am going to try a bit harder to do what I do better. I will try to post every week for this story, and I hope you all will enjoy.**

* * *

 **Chapter One – Little Brothers**

The stories told to them over the past three years, of the purple dragon that fought for their world, have been flashing through the minds of two very anxious young dragons. These stories that have kept their nightmares away seemed far fetched at best, especially when she had told them the same blood ran through their veins. But now, staring at the statue guarding Warfang's North Gate, both youngsters realize that their mother was speaking the truth.

"By the Ancestors, Cyrus! Mom wasn't lying..." A blue scaled whelpling remarks, looking upon the ten foot sculpture of Spyro, and seeing the features that remind him of what he sees in a mirror. "...we do look like the Hero of Avalar!"

He then turns to his older brother, whose round nose and curved white horns are exactly like the ones on the statue.

"No, Blake..." the older and darker blue colored dragon remarks, reaching his right paw out to grab his little brother by the neck, then gently pulling his head to his black scaled chest in a loving embrace.

"...he looks like Dad."

"Blaaake! Cyyyyrus!"

Their mother's voice sings their names, perking the ears of these youngsters, and they quickly turn around to face the one who gave them life. "Come over here...I want you to meet someone." her soft voice continues, but what their eyes see makes their hearts beat fast.

"Whoa!" both dragons bark with pure surprise in their voices, seeing the large green and orange Earth Guardian standing beside their navy blue mother.

"Mom! You know Terrador!"

"Better than most dragons!" the large stone mover replies, wrapping an arm around their mother, then placing a very passionate kiss upon her cheek. His voice quiets down so only she can hear and both boys watch their mother blush for a moment.

"That was a long time ago, Terry..." the slightly robust two tone blue dragoness replies. Her rugged paw reaching up to the larger dragon, grasping his blunt jaw, drawing it back to hers. A very short, but well placed kiss returns the feelings she has to him, however, as her eyes return to her startled kids, this dragoness returns to the present.

"...but I never forgot who my _first_ love was."

"Shut up, Mom!" the older of the two remarks with complete disbelief, even after seeing this display of love with his own eyes. "You and _Terrador_ , the _Ruler_ of Warfang, and _Guardian Master_ , had a thing before dad!?"

A smile fills both of their faces, recalling the moments early in life that now flood their memories.

"I was in your mom's classes for two years before your father came to the University." Terrador answers, leading the boy's mother over to them. He then looks up at the statue of Spyro and a wide grin crosses his face. "That is when she meet her true love...and I lost mine."

An almost somber voice takes over and quickly his paw is held tightly for support.

"I didn't mean to hurt you, Terrador..."

Her voice is snuffed with another kiss from her first love.

"You didn't hurt me, Skylar," the Earth Guardian says confidently, but with pain in his voice. However, his continued reasoning proves he is not lying to her. "I knew the two of you were meant for each other..." he pauses, looks at the statue of Spyro again, then smiles for the one his heart still beats strong for.

"...and as it turned out... it was a _fateful_ union."

The two just stare at each other for a moment when suddenly the ground begins to shudder. A large chain starts moving, lowering the heavy counter-weight to the ground, drawing the North Gate's solid granite door straight up.

"Wow... I really hope that thing holds!" Blake remarks with fear, as he stares up at the stone being lifted further into the air. His blue paws hold firm to the shaking ground and his eyes remain focused on the dense slab of rock made with powerful magic.

"Your older brother, Spyro, created that stone so it would be stronger than anything on Avalar." Terrador replies, patting the youngest dragon on his head with a massive paw. However, Cyrus is quick to answer, as his fear is the same as his little brother.

"Oh good...so the door will stay in one piece when it _falls_ on us?" he retorts sarcastically, especially as the chain begins groaning under the strain of lifting the fifty ton slab of granite further into the air.

"Yeah..." Blake adds, from under Terrador's paw. "...did our brother make that metal chain too? Cause that don't look so magical."

The large Earth dragon chuckles, hearing the same humor and spirit that made Skylar so easy to talk to in school, but mostly knowing her children are still well balanced. They have been through a lot in the last few years and are happily making it back home to Warfang for the first time...ever.

"You two remind me of your mother," he begins to say, however, another dragon standing within ear shot, guarding the now opening door, had overheard their conversation.

"Master Terrador!" this very startled green and red chested drake blurts out, literally stepping between the Earth Guardian and the children. "Did you say these youngsters are... _Spyro's_ brothers!?"

The smile on Terrador's face increases as the question is answered simply by sight.

"By the ancestors!" the gate guard continues, as he finally looks at the two siblings closely.

The same features that highlight the purple dragon's face stare back at him from the adolesent dragon and his three year old whelpling brother. The Warfang soldier then looks upon the dragoness to Terrador's side and quickly genuflects.

"That means you must be Spyro's Mother..." He continues, seeing the same smile that normally resides upon the hero's muzzle. The young guard keeps his head down, speaking to the humbled dragoness as if he were in the presence of greatness.

"...It is an _incredible_ honor to meet you, Ma'am."

Another trait of the purple dragon's bloodline is shown as the blue dragoness blushes with embarrassment being treated as royalty. She relaxes him with a soft paw to his lowered head.

"My name is Skylar...and please don't do that." she replies, as a crowd of dragons begin gathering around, realizing now who they were traveling with. "I'm just a normal citizen of Warf..."

The guard's head is up hastily, and a single digit on his right paw is waggled before Skylar's eyes.

"No, my dear! You are not a _normal_ dragon, like myself... our even Master Terrador here." he says, then shows a snide grin to the _ruler_ of Warfang and Guardian _Master_.

However, the great Earth Dragon nods in agreement, knowing what this dragoness has brought to the world.

"You bore the savior of Avalar."

Cheers begin sounding around the group, as more and more dragons realize the mother of Spyro has been journeying with the large group of refugees. Nearly a dozen full size adults surround Skyler's children, lifting them up off the ground for those in back to get a better glimpse of Spyro's younger brothers.

A barrage of question and praises are fired from all directions to the boys, strengthening the broken wills of two war torn children

 _Are you really his brothers? They do look like him! Can you guys use more than one element? I can feel the power coming from them! Look at their eyes, there just like his!_

"Holy cow, Cyrus..." the younger of two remarks, as a dozen paws hold him from every direction. "...what is going on!? What are they doing!?"

"Shut up and go with it, Dude." his brother remarks back quickly, his eyes locked upon a very sleek adolescent dragoness whom now sees him in a crowd of many.

"Why Yes! Spyro _is_ my brother." Cyrus says to the red dragoness, who immediately smiles wider then moves a step closer.

"Are you serious!?" Blake returns as his brother reaches for this cute dragon, taking her outstretched paw softly in his own.

Meanwhile, from the sidelines, Terrador lowers his wing down blanketing Skylar up against his right flank. She rests comfortably in this winged embrace of her one time flame, enjoying the sight of her children being treated like royalty. But it is the words that come from the Earth Guardian that makes her feel completely at ease.

"They are so much like him, Skylar..." the Earth Dragon says with conviction, as he is one of the few that truly call the Hero of Avalar a personal friend. "...I'm sure Spyro will get along with his little brothers just fine."

* * *

 **A quick look at the family Spyro never met, as they come home for the first time since the war. There is more to this, but I don't want to spill it all in the first chapter. The next part _will_ be about his other brother...promise ;)  
** **I am going to keep these chapters short and sweet (or bitter depending upon the chapter).**

 **Thank you to DragonMaster000 and Edwin Borelli for your reviews.**


	3. Big Brothers

**First, I wanna say thank you for the continued support. I cannot remember a time in the four years that I've been here, that my stories have been hit this many times.**  
 **Then I wanna say thank you to those that went the extra step by giving a review. Thank you Dragon-Uprising, Smauoggle, and MCZ...your words inspire.**  
 **I also wanna give a special thank you to Nanowarp67...if you're enjoying this story, go thank him. After feeling pretty horrible about my writing, he gave a review on another story that got my ass motivated to write again, and I appreciate that.**

 **OK, back to the story. We met the little brothers in the last chapter, so now it's time to meet the Big Brothers.  
**

 **Yes, that last word was pluralized.**

* * *

 **Chapter Two – Big Brothers**

As powerful as Spyro is, the purple and gold hero can do nothing to stop the internal shaking of the dark dragoness held tightly in his arms. Her fear so intrenched within, knowing the carnage she laid out upon the citizens of the Dragon City, along with the steep body count. Over a third of the drakes that called the city home were slaughter within the walls of Warfang, and many more as they sought refuge from the Terror of the Sky.

This fact was foreshadowed by an old hermit, and though they easily dismiss it at the time, Spyro and Cynder quickly found out how the past would not be forgotten. Even after saving the world, the first response by most was to hiss and spit at the dark dragon that walked beside their hero. Their joy not shown to Spyro until their distaste for Cynder was made aware, and this sadly became the norm.

" _You_ killed my husband... _You_ killed my son... _You_ killed.. _You_...Cynder"

The voices don't stop repeating within her mind, and the faces do not leave her memories either. The pain of being called a murderer every waking moment, along with the physical assaults that have continued over the five weeks since their return, pale in comparison to the memories of causing this pain.

And now, seeing the same agony coming from the only eyes she has felt comfort from, the Shadow dragoness cannot control her emotions.

"You have to calm down, Cynder..." Spyro whispers softly into her ear, squeezing her tightly once more. "...you're starting to scare me..."

Cynder breaks away from their embrace, staring him dead with her tear filled green eyes.

"You're scared!" she barks in his face, losing total control of her emotions as her voice becomes angry.

"Seriously Spyro! What if I killed your mother?" Cynder continues, stepping face to face with the slight taller and more muscular dragon. "Do you think you can really come to grips with that!?"

Spyro doesn't pause this time before he goes to answer, but Cynder doesn't give him a chance.

"NO! Forget that! You will say _yes,_ if only to make me feel better..." she argues, getting even closer to the nose of her love. "...Do you think your _father_ could...or maybe your brothers or sisters?" Cynder continues then backs away and places her right paw against her chest by the scar left by an angered widower.

"Would you stand on my side against your family if he decided to take _their_ revenge?"

Again Spyro pauses and again Cynder shudders inside. She knows now what she must do, and figures it best to leave before things get any worse.

"I think I should just go, Spyro..."

The purple dragon quickly replies in the negative and reaches out his paws to grasp Cynder in an embrace. However, his paws come away with only Shadow, as the black dragoness disappears into a smokescreen.

"CYNDER NO!" Spyro barks, as once more the dark dragon resorts to running away. He quickly turns to follow, seeing the trail of Cynder's Shadow power slipping under the closed door to his chamber.

"Hey, Doopy...You can't leave!"

A voice suddenly rings out from the corner of the room, and Spyro snaps his head to see Sparx appear from behind the curtain

" _I_ got this, _little_ brother..." the tiny adopted sibling of the purple hero remarks very snidely, pointing towards the pile of cushions by the window. "...you need to stay _here,_ as instructed by Terrador."

Spyro plucks his tiny brother from the air, and though he holds him before his angered eyes, he keeps his grip very loose on the fragile frame of his best friend in the world.

"Were you there the _whole_ time!?"

Just the sarcastic smile on Sparx's face is enough for Spyro to know the truth, but of course the loud mouthed dragonfly must also answer.

"Of course I was," he replies arrogantly, easily pulling himself from Spyro's purple paw. " _I'm_ the oldest, so I need to keep an eye on my little brother and make sure he doesn't do something stupid...like _ruin_ his life."

Sparx doesn't give his brother a chance to give his reply before floating directly before his eyes, practically landing on the bridge of Spyro's nose.

"Cynder didn't do it...and you _know_ that, so why'd you pause like that?"

Spyro stares at his brother hard, showing anger. However, the tiny dragonfly doesn't break from his position, becoming even more hostile to the one that could kill him with a single digit on his hind paw...especially knowing he won't.

"Then...I'm guessing you want her gone!? Right!"

"NO I DON'T!"

There is no hesitation, and the anger in Spyro's voice becomes pure.

Sparx quickly gives his brother a smug little smile and pats him on the nose.

"That's a good boy..." he says condescendingly, then turns and flies towards the door, pointing a finger at the pile of cusions again. "...now why don't you go sit over there and let your _big_ brother fix the damage you caused."

Spyro becomes a little more angrier, but only in voice.

"You know... You're only like _two hours_ older than me..." he barks, as his bright yellow brother zips through the key hole of his sleeping chamber door. A sarcastic grin then follows, hearing the laughter of his life long best friend echoing back through the small opening.

"...and I actually have to _open_ the door to get out of my room, _Tiny_!"

The purple dragon smiles as Sparx continues on, confident this conflict with Cynder will be resolved. For as much as a pain the ass his little older brother is, Spyro knows he will be able to talk her down. He returns to the spot by the window facing the North Gate, sitting and watching the entourage that moves towards the palace.

Outside the door, the small yellow dragonfly remains perfectly still, hovering in one spot while listening hard to the world around him. His long antennea search the air for vibrations, looking for the wakes a body will leave behind while running. However, the Shadow dragon left without structure, leaving only the slightest trace of her path away from the door.

Sparx holds his breath to quiet everything around, allowing him to find that path.

 _You know that trick don't work on me Cynder...I_ will _find you._ he says to himself, feeling a single hair flickering on the carpet to his right side, left there by the Manweresmall whom just visited the purple dragon in his room.

Sparx then zips down the hallway, hooking a sharp turn to his left then down another long corridor. Having to lose her Shadowy cover, as magic reduces quickly using such a powerful spell, the smart dragonfly can now feel the familiar wake of vibrations Cynder leaves, as he has followed behind Spyro and his mate for a while now.

He tracks her down three full staircases and into the palace's one time dungeon, where hundreds of shadows allow the dark dragoness to hide without magic.

"Come on, Cynder!" Sparx whines, losing the echo of her body for a moment in the drafty room . "You know I can find you in here...are you really gonna _make_ me look?"

Cynder simply stares in his direction, allowing Sparx to see her teary green eyes as they flash in the flickering light coming from the torches by the entrance way.

"Thank You, Sis..." he remarks, quickly hovering over to his second favorite place to reside; Cynder's right horn. He grasps his antennae, bending them softly before himself. "...I really hate it when I have to use these... They're so delicate."

The slightest little chuckle spills from Cynder's nostril and Sparx already knows he has her.

It is his gift in life, and the reason Spyro kept his sanity during all those years of war. Even with the countless deaths and the destruction that surrounded the purple dragon on his quest, it was Sparx who made sure he remained on the right path.

Especially in his mind.

His sarcastic humor made that happen, as the yellow dragonfly knew when to joke at a tense moment and lighten Spyro's mood. And now, in this dark dungeon, he continues to show this incredibly bright trait.

"I have to have them manicured next week, do you wanna go with me, You can have your horns done!" Sparx pauses, pricks his finger on her right cheek horn, then continues with a pure sarcastic tone.

"All twenty seven of them."

With another small chortle squeaking out, Sparx begins his quest to lighten the spirit of a darkened soul.

"Well, my little brother is a big jerk...isn't he!?" he bluntly asks, and before Cynder can stop him from talking about a subject she doesn't want to, the loud mouth dragonfly answers the question himself.

"To hesitate like _that_ , knowing full well he would drop _everyone_ in his path to defend you..." he remarks confidently, then quickly moves from Cynder's lunging right paw as she tries to grasp him from mid air. "...even if it meant standing up to his family!"

"Come on! You really think he would fight his _own blood_ to save...the Terror of the Sky!?" Cynder argues, and Sparx does not hesitate to answer.

"He fought _me..._ to save _you_!" Sparx retorts with a solid tone in voice for once, then zips up to the nose of a stunned dragoness to remind her of the truth. " _I_ said leave you behind when he defeated you...and he wouldn't! He couldn't!"

Cynder lowers her head, knowing what she is about to say will probably enrage the yellow dragonfly, and one of the only friends on this planet she has. But since she is trying to run away...

"You're not his _blood_ , Sparx."

The bluntness of her voice doesn't sway the tiny insect one bit, as this has been told to him plenty of times, and a small smirk actually crosses his face.

"Oh no, Cynder. I _am_ his blood...and don't you ever forget that." he replies, looking around the room to make sure they are alone.

"I have seen and felt every emotion Spyro has lived through. From the day he broke out of that egg... To the countless times he broke the bed he slept on... And then the entire year he had to be taught while standing outside the school..." Sparx pauses, looks at Cynder and smiles wider. "...then the next year when they rebuilt the school, but he grew twice the size they expected, and he still had to sit outside..."

Sparx pause again, realizing he is going of his point, and returns to his reasoning.

" _I_ am the one that heard his dreams while he slept. _I_ am the one who dealt with his pain when they made fun of him. _I_ am the one that brought out the fire within, allowing my brother to realize for the first time what he was...And _I_ am the one that kept him safe while making the journey to save the world."

Another sudden laugh is given by the dark dragon, bringing a smile to the yellow dragonfly,

"I told him _not_ to trust you...and I am his voice of reason, Cynder." Sparx continues, looking hard into the green eyes that begin to show life and hope again. "And I can tell you now that... I was wrong. That dragoness _is_ dead. My brother killed her."

"No... The Terror of the Sky is _not_ dead..." A voice suddenly whispers from the far side of the room and both Cynder and Sparx are startled by the notion of not being alone.

A pair of green eyes then focus on the pair from the corner of the dark room.

"...In fact...the one who killed my family stands before me." the voice continues, and Sparx becomes angered.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!?" he barks, but backs away as these floating green eyes disappear, then reappear directly before him.

"I am Scythe..."

A black muzzle forms just in front of Sparx, then suddenly, the remainder of the dragon billows from a black cloud of Shadows.

Both Cynder and Sparx back away as this red chested dragon, who looks just like a stronger version of the Terror of the Sky, moves closer and closer to the startled pair. His eyes lock then on Cynder's, showing the same rage and hatred that once resided in her evil gaze.

"..and I am your brother."

* * *

 **Whoa, Cynder has an older brother, and if you caught what he said, then you know how bad this is going to be for the dark dragoness.**

 **What's next...I'm not saying a thing, except, I will post it by next week...well that's if I don't die of a heart attack or get hit by a car.**

 **How bout a review...if not, a prayer that I don't die or get hit by a car ;)**


	4. That's what makes you Mom

**Woo hoo, I didn't die!**

 **Thank you everyone...I'm overwhelmed by your response. This story is easily the most popular Spyro fanfic I've done to date. I truly hope I keep everyone's interest.**  
 **A pile of reviews, and all good, has made me find a groove, so thank you to Smauoggle, Holycross9, Dragonmaster000, MCZ, GhostChris, Dragon-Uprising, and dun dun dun for the inspiring words.**

* * *

 **Chapter Three – That's what makes you Mom**

"Come on! Really!" Spyro remarks, looking upon the clock on the wall again, then back out the window. He can see the group of new comers now huddle outside Mason's blacksmith shop, talking.

"You cannot be serious! How much longer are you going to talk, Mason!? "

The purple dragon literally walks around in a small circle, then looks back up at the clock again.

"It's been ten damn minutes already...I'm gonna kill him!"

There were only two other times Nina saw her adopted son acting this anxiously. Once, when he went to school for the very first time with his normal sized brother, and again when he learned of his heritage, which sent him venturing off to the dragon city.

 _"I have to know who and what I am, Mom."_ he said that fateful day, but the little dragonfly already had the answer to that question

 _You're my special baby..._

Nina recalls the pain in her heart, as Spyro left to find himself, truly wondering if she would ever see her beloved purple angel ever again. She knew Avalar was in turmoil, but never could have guessed how her 'special' boy would have been so influential in the fate of their world.

And when the war was over, Nina was sure he would remain with his own kind. But when the dust settled from the battle with Malefor, and the world returned to a whole, there was only one place the purple dragon truly considered his home.

 _...and you came back to_ me _._

Now only five weeks later, she is looking at losing him once more, but in her mine, this time it will be permanent.

"Come on...not again!" Spyro yells, startling Nina from her terrifying thoughts.

The purple dragon gets back up off the cushions he literally sat down upon seven seconds earlier, and throws his arms up in the air.

"Why are you guys stopping over there now!?"

The entourage cannot hear Spyro lose his mind for the tenth time, as they are stopped every few feet on the crowded welcoming streets of Warfang.

"You can say hello to them LATER!" he barks out the window, then looks to the door as it creaks with movement.

"Cynder!" he cries, hoping the dark dragoness has returned to help calm him, as she is also weighing heavily on his mind. However, when he sees whose there, Spyro's nerves quickly quiet themselves.

"Oh! Hi mom!" he remarks, showing the same boyish smile he always gives to the one that made him feel safe. However, seeing her floating there, the purple dragon's nerves suddenly return to fear.

"Oh no! Did I wake dad again!?"

Nina returns a very joy-filled grin and quickly buzzes over to her purple hero. She places her tiny hand upon his nose, looking deep into her son's eyes.

Spyro is sure she is going to reassure him about his father's sleeping habits, and how he wouldn't wake up if the city was bombed. However, he is stunned by what she says.

"You're still going to call me... _Mom_?"

The purple dragon's attention finally breaks from the window and quickly he notices the tears that begin welling up in Nina's eyes.

"Why would I stop calling my _Mom_...my Mom?"

His answer is so bluntly honest that Nina's fears are wiped away in an instant, however, she still looks out the window towards the entourage that finally leaves the small blacksmith's shop.

She says nothing, but Spyro is a smart boy, and he figures it out quickly.

"I love you." He adoringly remarks while placing his paw softly upon his tiny mother's back and hugging her against the front of his round nose. His eyes stay focused upon hers, making sure she understands what he says now comes from deep within his soul.

"No matter whose blood flows through my veins, you will _always_ be my mom. You are the one who cared for me when I was sick, and praised me when I did good. I will always look to you and Dad for guidance, because you have yet to steer me wrong."

Nina tries hard to hold her emotions, but fails miserably. She gently pecks the tip of the purple nose she once remembers was not much larger than her other son's.

"I love you too, my special little baby." she cries softly, easing her physical grasp upon her adopted son, knowing now the internal bond between them will never be broken. Nina gives another gentle peck upon the tip of Spyro's nose, then rubs it softly while reminiscing about the moment she first saw him.

"I remember the day we found your egg..." she quietly confesses to her special boy, staring at the purple eyes that have captured her imagination for the last fifteen years. "...I was only a week from giving birth to Sparx and was terrified, absolutely sure that I was going to fail as a parent."

Spyro balks upon hearing his mother's fears, but before he can say a word to dispute her thought.

"Then I saw your brother for the first time, and I knew at that moment..." Nina pauses, recalling the moment Flash handed their newborn child to her shaky unstable arms, and feeling the strength that quickly found its way into her soul.

"...I was not allowed to fail."

Nina smiles as Spyro begins to tear up and she hovers closer to his face removing the large tear from his right eye.

"Then only an hour and fifty three minutes later...out of that shell you came." Nina pauses again, recalling the moment Spyro's egg cracked open and the sudden fear that overtook her in and instant. However, it was also at that moment, with her child in her arms and another being tended to by her husband, that the new mother understood what her purpose in life was.

Nina takes a deep breath, showing her son how strong she became in that instance.

"That's when I knew I _couldn't_ fail..." The small dragonfly crashes into her youngest son's nose once more, hugging him as tightly as she can. "...I _wouldn't_ fail."

Spyro gently lays his paw atop of his mother, holding her to the bridge of his nose as tightly as he can without hurting her.

"And that is what makes you my Mom."

Suddenly both of their ears perk up, as a familiar voice echoes down the long hall.

"SPYRO! HELP!"

The fear imbedded in Sparx's voice has both dragon and dragonfly heading for the door in an instant.

"Easy! Sweetheart...What's the matter!?" mom remarks with concern, as her youngest son opens the door wide, revealing the fear-filled face of the child who came from her loins.

"The Terror of the Sky has returned!" Sparx replies in a tizzy, adding more concern to a mother as his voice speaks only the truth.

"You better stop that crap, Sparx!" Spyro replies angrily, as he thinks his brother is only poking a joke at Cynder again, however, as the tiny dragonfly finishes his thought, the purple dragon does a one eighty.

"I'm not talking about Cynder, you oversized purple idiot...there's another dragon in the dungeon with her!"

Spyro is gone in a half a heartbeat, hauling his butt down to the old dungeon in only a few seconds. His eyes quickly focus upon the sleek black and red dragon that is now standing before Cynder, his right arm drawn back to strike.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!" he calls in anger, Comet Dashing across the room in an instant and crashing into the side of the larger drake.

The black dragon falls to his side, but quickly flashes away in a smoke-screen of Shadow, then reappears directly before the purple hero on three paws, holding his ribs in pain with the other.

Spyro immediately gets between Cynder and this new threat, yet he cannot break the feeling of Deja Vu, as he stares down a dragon that looks exactly like the one who now stands behind him did, four years earlier.

"Well...Well... Well... if it isn't the mighty purple hero himself! You know, It's quite an honor to meet the dragon who saved our world...then turned his back on it!" The black dragon remarks angrily, then actually bows to Spyro.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Scythe, and I am here to kill this abomination that stands behind you."

Spyro's anger increases as this new dragon points a sharp talon at Cynder. He broadens his gold chest, digging his hind claws into the ground for leverage. Spyro's tail then begins tapping the ground in front of Cynder's feet, showing her he is ready to fight.

"Why do you want to do that? The purple dragon asks, trying diplomacy first, but already concluding in his mind that this will get physical. It is the eyes of this opponent that makes Spyro sure of his conclusion, as he has seen this look before.

However, it is his familiarity with these green eyes that forces the purple hero to continue trying a diplomatic solution.

"I admit I don't knowing everything, but I know when I see a strong _family_ resemblance." Spyro glances back at Cynder for only a second, then returns his eyes to a dragon whom looks like a twin of the Terror of the Sky, only more muscular. Spyro can tell this dragon is only a few years older then himself and Cynder, bringing forth another easy conclusion.

"Do you really want to kill your own sister?"

Scythe becomes enraged and rises up on his hind legs. The large dragon opens his wings wide to show off the decent size difference between he and the purple hero, then slams his front feet back down to the ground, shaking the room with his raging power.

"THAT EVIL BEAST IS NOT FAMILY! MY SISTER DIED BEFORE HATCHING!" he yells with a primal anger in his voice, reliving the moment that has made this confrontation necessary to him. His memory quickly stirring up the unforgettable images from his youth and the day his family was ruined by the one that should have completed it.

"I swore to my father, as he gasped his last breath, that I would kill the dragon that destroyed everything."

Spyro remains in his defensive posture, especially as Scythe moves a step closer to Cynder.

"You're too late for vengeance...I already killed Malefor." the purple hero replies, keeping his eyes focused hard upon the encroaching black dragon. "He was the one responsible for their deaths."

Scythe steps closer and shakes his head.

"Do you think I'm stupid, Spyro...I saw what I saw." he replies, now focusing his eyes on the purple dragon. "And if you decide to stay in my way, then I will be forced to kill you too."

Spyro growls angrily knowing another fight is now imminent and he rises up on his hind legs. His orange-gold wings open wide to show off his size, but it is the glow of power that flashes from his frame that makes Scythe take notice.

"I don't want to hurt you!" he grunts, as the influx of energy begins to darken the scales of the purple dragon. His paw is quickly thrust out in an instant, stopping his open palm less than an inch from Scythe's scarlet red chest.

The Shadow dragon does not stop, pushing his chest up against Spyro's paw, then lowering his eyes down to the posturing hero.

"You are not a threat to me...little dragon."

A look of concern fills Cynder's eyes, knowing the true power she possesses and how influential it could be in a fight. She goes to stop the altercation that Spyro would have no chance in winning, but before she can make a move...it begins and ends.

Spyro in his rage, shoves the larger dragon, and Scythe quickly goes to work.

He falls backward with the momentum, grasping Spyro's paw and pulling him off balance. The large dragon then yanks the teetering Spyro to his chest and surrounds him with his arms to hold the purple dragon tightly.

"DON'T!" Cynder screams, as Shadows begin to form around the pair and quickly both dragons are gone from her sight.

"SPYROOOOOOOOOOOOOO! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Her screams are so terror filled that the concerned dragonfly, whom just arrived to see where her son ran off to, quickly knows something is wrong.

Only a dark cloud and the Shadow dragoness that helped her sons, and whom she has come to love, is visible.

"What happened, Cynder..." she cries, hastily flying over to the shuddering dragoness. "Where's my son!?"

Suddenly Nina's eyes focus on a black dragon that appears out of the Shadowy cloud, alone.

"NOOOO!" Cynder screams again, quickly running to her brother, and grasping him by the shoulders. "Don't kill him...kill me!"

Scythe's paw is quickly across the face of the dragon he hates most, knocking Cynder to the ground with relative ease.

"I have every intention of killing you, you worthless bitch!" he retorts arrogantly, lowering his head down to get muzzle to muzzle with her, and showing the pure anger he has within. "...but first, I will make you to feel like I did, and have you beg helplessly for his life. Just like you made me do!"

His paw is around her neck and Cynder does not fight back, however, a small yellow dragonfly suddenly stops the assault, slamming into the dark dragon's long narrow muzzle.

Scythe is startled for only a moment, and loses his grip on Cynder's neck, allowing her to run.

He quickly swats at Sparx with his now empty paw, coming away with nothing.

"Where's my brother..."

Scythe sprays the tiny dragonfly with a blast of Shadow Magic from his mouth, which is bitter cold and very disorienting. It quickly knocks the little insect back a few fee. However, having spent enough time in Cynder's presence, and having dealt with her countless attempts to blast him with this deterrent, it is not enough to dissuade Sparx from being...Sparx.

"... you Jerk!"

"He put him in the Shadow Realm, Sparx." Cynder replies with fear in her voice, knowing only a Shadow dragon can survive in that bitter cold vacuum of nothingness.

"Well what are you waiting for, an invitation?!" Sparx replies emphatically, wondering why she's just sitting there weeping instead of jumping into the Shadow Realm to retrieve his brother.

"Go get him, Stupid!"

"It don't work that way...little fella" Scythe remarks confidently. "The Shadow Realm is as vast as the Universe itself, and completely empty of life an substance. There would be no way this evil creature could find a single dragon in something so big."

"He's gonna kill Spyro because of me." Cynder quickly breaks down crying, her voice showing how hopeless their situation is.

"Please..." she pleads, crouching down before her brother to beg, like he did. "...take my life... not his."

"In do time..." he replies, lowering down to smile in her face, just like she did to him. "...I want you to suffer before I kill you."

"You're not killing anyone!" Sparx says angrily, knowing he has one attack in his arsenal that will work against a dragon, because it left his much larger little brother completely defenseless. And though he promised Spyro he would never do _that_ to any dragon ever again, the yellow insect knows it is his only chance to save him.

However, before Sparx can do it, the only other person to witness what Sparx did to Spyro, does it first.

Nina flies directly up to the nose of Scythe and burrows herself into his left nostril.

Watching her children get into many disputes, as young brothers do, Nina would watch Spyro use his size to influence his tiny older sibling. The young mother thought she would have a difficult time raising them together as brothers, knowing one would always dominate the other. That was until the day Sparx flew up his brother's nose.

"AAHHHHHH! BY THE ANCESTORS!" Scythe screams, grasping helplessly at his muzzle to stop the odd pain, as Spyro's mom digs her way deeper into his skull.

"Bring him back."

Her voice echoes inside the head of a now trembling dragon, whom starts flailing at his muzzle desperately.

"Please...stop!" Scythe begs, falling to the ground and grasping his snout in writhing pain. "I'll do anything you want...just stop!"

"I said...bring my baby back...NOW!"

Cynder and Sparx watch as the black dragon disappears into a cloud of shadows, then returns only a second later holding Spyro in his arms. Scythe releases him quickly returning his paws to his nose.

Spyro hits the ground and convulses several times, coughing hard as oxygen returns to his lungs after a few moments without. However, it is the freezing cold temperature in the realm of nothingness that keeps the purple dragon shuddering.

"Damn, that was cold!" the purple dragon groans, as Cynder smothers him with her body, her wings, and her warmth.

"Are you OK!?" she asks, holding her hero tightly, never wanting to let him go again. However, before Spyro can answer.

"I did what you said..." Scythe cries, hoping the pain will soon stop. He falls to the ground himself, helpless to stop the agony of Nina's jostling "...Please, get out of my nose!"

The large dragon then looks upon the one he tried to kill, showing the Hero of Avalar a pair of desperate eyes.

"OK...OK...I'll say it, I'll say it" he cries, hearing another order from within his head.

"..I'm sorry...I'm sorry...Please...I'm sorry!"

"Sparx!" Spyro calls for his brother, knowing it must be him. "You promised never to do that again!"

"It ain't me, bro..." To Spyro's shock, the answer comes from his right horn, as Sparx has taken his normal place by his brother's side. "...I'm right here dude!"

"Well then who the hell is up his nose!?"

"It's me sweetie!"

His mother's voice echoes from inside the black dragon's muzzle, and the purple dragon is stunned beyond belief.

"Are you kidding me!?"

Nina slowly pulls herself out of Scythe's right nostril, then looks at her son with a big smile.

"What?" she remarks, as Spyro's jaw remains wide open with surprise. "I would do anything I can to help my special boy."

"Like I said before..." Spyro grasps his mother with a soft paw, and pulls her to his nose. However, knowing where she just came from, her youngest son forgoes giving his mother a kiss. Though, he does rest her gently upon his nose, hugging the one that would do anything for her special son.

"...that's what makes you my Mom."

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 **Hope you enjoyed this part, but I won't know unless you say something. Just a few kind words, or some harsh ones if you think that's necessary.**

 **NotMarge, my best friend on this site, I dedicate this chapter to you, and to every other mom who goes above and beyond the norm for their children...like mine.**

 **Until the next posting...**


	5. My Guardian

**Which Guardian do you think Spyro listens to the most since Ignitus' death? Well here's my opinion.**

 **Thank you to Dragon-Uprising and MCZ for their reviews. Guest, I would thank you but you didn't tell me how that last chapter is confusing? I don't know...because I am an idiot. Please tell me next time what was confusing so I can fix it.**

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 **Chapter Four - My Guardian**

 _(one week earlier)_

With the sun shining directly over head, Warfang is at her most beautiful, as newly built structures of polished stone and crystal glisten in the brilliant light. However, it is also the busiest and loudest time within the walls of the majestic dragon city, as three quarters of Warfang remains under construction. And without the use of electricity, the heavy work, done by the inhabitants themselves, is only possible during the day.

At night, the city is refined by thousands of blind Manweresmalls, whom use their sonar to restore Warfang to her old glory, carving tons of stone and crystal placed earlier in the day by the drakes. They prefer the darkness, and not get trampled on by dragons whom are busy hauling heavy objects during the day. However, what really keeps them from working in the daylight are the supervisors that Master Guardian Terrador has left in charge.

"NO! NO! NO! You're putting that beam in the wrong place!"

The groans and grumbles of a dozen dragons and one heavyset cheetah fills the air, snuffing out the sounds of the constant construction around them. However, they quickly stop when Cyril shows them an angered look.

"Do you want to explain to Spyro why _his_ home has not been completed, yet you all sleep comfortably in your _own_ dwellings just down the road?"

"Cause I told them to build their houses first, Master Cyril..." Everyone smiles as the purple dragon walks up beside the Icy cold Guardian then sits down without a care of where he will lay his head for the night. "...I'm still staying at my Mom's house for another few days, then we're all moving to Warfang together."

"Well...thank you, young dragon...this schedule is pointless now." Cyril replies coldly, grasping a small clipboard dangling from his neck by a string, ripping it off, then tossing it in the garbage. "Did you plan on informing me anytime today, or was that privileged information you were keeping to yourself?"

Spyro grins and taps his wing softly against the blue dragon's flank.

"Sorry...I didn't mean to mess up your precious little schedule." he remarks with a sarcastic tone, then looks at the group working on his home and rolls his eyes dramatically. They all chuckle then return to the grunt work of building the Hero of Avalar's home. However, as Spyro continues... "I guess Volteer will have to come clean up after you again!" ...the construction comes to a grinding halt once more, as everyone begins laughing harder.

Cyril's eyes light up with anger, and Spyro can actually see steam begin streaming from his ears.

"How dare you!?" the boorish dragon replies, looking across the way to the yellow and blue Guardian, whom is supervising another group of laborers rebuild the Dragon University.

His cold eyes then return to the purple dragon, whose smile increases every second he watches Cyril melt down.

"It was _you_ who pushed me off that job, Spyro!" the blue blood's anger increase with every word, and so does his volume. "Do you want _HIM_ TO FINISH YOUR HOUSE TOO!?"

Everyone stops working and focuses on the blue and purple dragons, whom have become famous for poking fun at each other in the few weeks since Spyro's triumphant return.

Cyril quickly does a three hundred and sixty degree turn around to the right, looking at the eyes focusing on him. He then does another three sixty back in the opposite direction to confirm he has drawn everyone's attention, especially Volteer's.

They can both see the yellow dragon begin ordering his crew to break, and know the inevitable will soon happen.

"Why do you do this to me, Spyro?" Cyril asks bluntly, and with a very humbled tone.

Seeing Volteer begin a slow walk over, the purple hero knows he has only a moment to express the feelings he has kept secret from everyone.

"Cause since Ignitus died, I have considered you to be my... _dragon_ father." His voice is so honest, and it catches the blue blood Guardian completely off guard.

"Your Dragon Father?"

Spyro smiles at Cyril's confusion and explains himself

"Flash is my Dad, there is no disputing that..." The purple dragon replies, "...but he don't know everything I need to know about myself...how could he?."

"What about the others?" Cyril asks with an even more humbled tone, never truly knowing how the purple dragon felt about him.

"Terrador is too busy to talk, and is as stubborn as they come..." He says, then points at the approaching Guardian. Spyro's voice becomes very sarcastic as he continues. "...and you can't get a word in edgewise with the walking thesaurus coming over here."

Spyro moves directly before the blue dragon, his voice quieting down so not to be heard by anyone but Cyril.

"But...when I speak to you, it's different...I know you are listening, and giving me your full attention" Spyro pauses for only a moment, closing his eyes, and waiting for the right words to enter his mind. His purple eyes then open wide, focusing on the one drake that has listened to every problem he has had.

"I feel as if I am speaking with my fiery old friend...and his words meant everything to me, Cyril."

The blue dragon grins, but then shows confusion immediately afterward.

"Well, then why do you do this to me?"

Spyro smiles as Volteer begins barking from nearly fifty yards away.

"Do you need someone to show you how to read those blueprints, old dragon!?"

Cyril becomes a bit angry, as the taunting tone of his fellow guardian and best friend, drives a few agonizing pains down his spine. However, before he can blow his top on the yammering drake, whom continues to spew garbage that everyone can hear, Spyro's quiet voice rises up to his ears from below.

"Cause I love to mess around with _family_..." he remarks, and Cyril's attention is quickly to the young purple dragon that is looking up to him. "...and that is what you are to me."

The normally cold heart of the Icy Guardian melts with Spyro's confession, and he shows the young dragon a grateful smile. None of the words Volteer keeps blabbering are even heard by the Guardian of Ice, whom is suddenly compelled to grasp Spyro up in his paws for a tight embrace.

"Hey!" the teenaged dragon barks out, never expecting such an emotional response from the usually snobby dragon, whom keeps his paws locked firmly around him. However, as everyone watching begins to show a slight look of concern, especially Volteer, who knows how annoyed Cyril can get with Spyro from time to time, the young hero gets another great idea to have fun with this particular family member.

"VOLTEER! HELP ME!" Spyro barks out with a slight tone of panic, drawing Cyril's attention to the diabolical eyes of the purple dragon. His voice then lowers for only the guardian to hear.

"Like I said...I love to mess with my family..." Spyro grasps Cyril tightly, then raises his voice again.

"HE'S GONE NUTS...ZAP HIM!"

A bolt of lightning suddenly strikes the pair, and though Spyro takes most of the limited voltage, Cyril still gets a helluva tingle throughout his body, causing him to fall down on his stomach. The purple dragon begins laughing hysterically, especially as a large laborer pounces upon the stunned Ice dragon, holding him down further to the ground.

"Where should I put this dragon, Master Spyro...he's in the _wrong_ place!" This large laboring Earth mover jokes, and the remaining construction crew laughs. The helpful drake could tell Spyro was kidding, and does not get violent, playing along with the gag. He quickly releases the older Guardian, helping Cyril back up to his four paws, and returns to his job.

"That was uncalled for, Spyro!" Cyril barks angrily, locking his eyes with the purple hero, allowing him to see the pure joy deep within the gaze of Avalar's greatest son. He pauses from yelling further, again feeling his heart pound with a certain type of excitement, and he conveys his feelings in return.

"I don't think I want to be part of this family."

His voice is so full of sarcasm that Spyro knows his dragon father is actually honored, but just not ready for the repercussions of having the fun-loving purple hero as his son. However, as the nearly adult dragon crushes Cyril with another hug, the sentiment is quickly reversed.

"Thank You Cyril...for everything." Spyro remarks loud enough for Volteer to hear, as he has arrived to aid his friend, whom he knew was not hurting Spyro. However, he does not expect the next words that come from the purple dragon's mouth.

"I love you, Dad."

"WAIT!? WHAT!?"

Volteer is left speechless, well for about three seconds.

"That is not possible? I know that for certain he's not your son cause I've know you for like...forever Cyril, and never once did you tell me that you were seeing someone. In fact, the last girlfriend you had was like twenty seven years ago, when we were in the University...which I am now rebuilding..."

Volteer pauses, taking a nice sized breath, as Cyril gives him the stink eye. The yellow dragon then returns his startled gaze upon the Icy Guardian.

"This makes no sense...you cannot be Spyro's dad, and I will be quite annoyed with you if I hear you told this young dragon that you were his father..."

"I'm not his father you Imbecile...He only thinks of me as a father!" Cyril finally cuts in, stopping Volteer's rant.

"Him!?" Volteer retorts, looking at Spyro with total disbelief. "Why would you pick this, snobby, cold-blooded, ignorant, self-centered dragon as your...father?"

Volteer stops, looks at his friend for a moment and remarks "No offense!"

"Oh! Of course not!" Cyril replies sarcastically, placing a wide smile on the purple dragon's face.

Spyro then goes to answer, however, Volteer cuts him off.

"I mean it makes no sense to me that you would choose Cyril over myself, since I am the more wiser and powerful guardian!"

"Says who!?" Cyril barks, but actually Spyro is the one whom decides to voice his opinion.

"Yeah but you don't know when to shut up and listen to me, Volteer!" he says, shocking both guardians as Spyro uses a harsh tone. "So how helpful is your wisdom when you don't even know what I need?"

"A fine point!" The blue dragon adds, but he also draws Spyro angered eyes. A gesture of his head shows the purple dragon how he is sorry for speaking out of turn, without speaking again.

Spyro returns his eyes to Volteer, whom actually begins showing an emotional response from this chastizing. It pains the young hero, and of course, he goes no further with his angered tone.

"I know how wise you are, my friend..." he says, striding up to the motor-mouthed guardian, and placing a paw upon the side of his lowered muzzle. "And because of _everything_ that comes out of this beak, I can say you are also the most honest dragon I know."

Spyro looks back at Cyril, showing him how happy he is with where he stands at this moment.

"I am lucky..." he proudly states, then looks around at the many workers whom continue to build the home in which he will live. "...I have two separate families, the ones who raised me, and the ones whom took me in when I came home."

Spyro suddenly becomes a bit depressed, and the real reason for his outlook on life is revealed to everyone who can hear him.

"I don't know who my real family is, and I probably never will..." he says, choking back the sudden emotion of this truth-filled moment. However, as everyone stops what they're doing, showing their hero support, his smile returns for them.

"...and that's why I consider all of you, and everyone in Warfang, my brothers and sisters."

A hush falls over the area, as this sentiment if felt by all...except one, and he voices his opinion with rage.

"You are _not_ my brother!"

Everyone is in shock as a large black and tan scaled Earth mover steps forward from a different construction project. They can tell he is not kidding by just his demeanor, but his words make it known why.

"My brother is dead, and it was your evil girlfriend who killed him!" he spits angrily at Spyro, stepping within a few feet of the purple dragon before being restrained by several other workers. "Don't you dare call _me_ family you piece of..."

"THAT'S ENOUGH, SLATER!"

This loud voice strikes fear into the young Earth Dragon, as he never knew the Guardian Master was watching.

"Uncle Terrador!" he cries out with fear, knowing he is going to get reprimanded harshly for his actions towards Spyro. However, as Slater turns to face the large green dragon he respects as much as his father, his anger returns in an instant.

"WHY IS SHE HERE!?"

Spyro also notices the Shadow dragoness he loves, whom remains in a nearly mortified motionless state at Terrador's side. He becomes upset seeing her trembling so hard, looking around at all the eyes that now burn through her.

"Easy Cynder..." Terrador remarks, as her fidgeting gets his attention. "...no one will attack you while you are with me and Spyro!"

However, her trembling remains as Spyro voices his own anger.

"Why are you here, Cynder? I told you to stay with my Mom and Dad, and not to come back to the city until our home is ready!"

"Yeah! Get out of here!" Several others barks, and the purple dragon becomes upset at himself. He can hear the hatred begin spewing from those he just called his brothers and sisters, and it hurts him further as he was the one that opened the flood gate.

He quickly runs to her side, grasping the black dragon in a tight embrace.

"I'm sorry Cynder..." he says softly, knowing there has to be a very important reason for her to make this dangerous journey to the city. He quickly lifts the lowered jaw and kisses the dragoness he has already betrothed himself to. "...I know you would only come here if it was important, please forgive me."

Cynder calms down, but remains cautious with her surroundings, as several dragons begin encroaching upon her position. She knows Spyro and the three Guardains will protect her with their lives, but there is only so much they can do if everyone decided to lynch her for her crimes.

"Hun...Hunter stopped by the dragonfly village..." she replies with a shaky voice, staring at the large black and tan nephew of Terrador whom continues to edge closer. "...he wanted me to give this message to you personally."

The black dragoness hands Spyro a small scroll, and he quickly grasps Cynder's shaking paw with both of his, holding her steady.

"Easy sweetie...I swear to you...none of my brothers and sisters will hurt you."

Just his words get nearly everyone back to their jobs, as they agree with the purple dragon, and will remain neutral.

"No matter how much I begged not to come here..." Cynder returns, then looks dead into her fiance's eyes. "...he said it had to be me."

Spyro becomes a bit anxious, and looks up at the Guardian Master.

"I have no clue what it says, Spyro. She wouldn't let me read it."

The purple dragon gives him a wide grin, then shows an even bigger one to Cynder. He quickly tares the small string binding this scroll with a single talon and unfurls it.

 _Spyro,_

 _I have unbelievable news from the north, as our scouts have come across a large party of nearly fifty dragons heading towards Warfang._

Spyro's eyes again are to the large Guardian Master, showing him a great deal of excitement and life.

"More survivors!?" he says, but immediately Cynder begins trembling again. The purple dragon does not notice her stepping back, as his eyes quickly return to the scroll, reading the rest with more enthusiasm.

 _They have been hiding in the Nordic Mountains since the day Warfang was attacked, over fifteen years ago, and are anxious to finally return home._

Again Spyro looks up to Terrador, whom begins showing signs of an actual smile.

"That's as long as I've been alive, Master Terrador, do you think that's possible a group of dragon could have made it that far?"

"Of course it is!" The large stone dragon takes no time to answer, knowing the tenacity of Warfang's inhabitants, especially that group. However, as the smile on his face continues to grow, Spyro becomes almost concerned.

"What is it!?" he ask, and Terrador looks at Volteer and Cyril.

"I think my be where Blake and Skylar sought shelter."

Both Guardians show shock, as they quickly recall those names, and that they may have headed north after the city was destroyed.

"Who are Blake and Skylar!?" Spyro asks, as all three guardians now look down at him and smile.

"They are the ones who brought a purple egg to the rookery over fifteen years ago."

Terrador's reply floors the normally unflappable hero, who crumbles to the ground as his legs wobble uncontrollably.

"Are you serious!?" Spyro asks with such an uncertainty that Terrador is forced to confirm what he said.

"I'm very serious, young dragon..." he helps Spyro up off the ground, lifting him all the way up into a very solid embrace. "...your parents are coming home."

"By the ancestors..."

His voice trails off, as he never thought he might hear those words, however, Spyro's joy is felt for only a moment as Cynder takes off running.

"HEY!" He yells, quickly breaking free from Terrador's grasp and running after her, knowing she would not fare well alone in a city that still hates her.

Terrador and Volteer show a look of surprise, as both dragons disappear from sight in a game of chase, however, Cyril is not shocked at all. In fact, a terrifying thought crosses his mind, consuming the normally cold dragon with overwhelming emotions.

"Oh my goodness." he says softly, getting his friends' attention as he lays down on his stomach, an unbalanced look of terror in his eyes.

"What is it?" Volteer asks, knowing his friend has knowledge that he is keeping inside.

"Cynder..." he says with pain in his voice, recalling the memories during the war, when he looked for able bodied recruits. The Icy Guardian had actually made it to the Nordic Mountains, and saw a village that had just been built...then watched it destroyed by the Terror of the Sky.

"...Cydner attacked that village, about four years earlier, Gentleman."

The large blue dragon retakes his feet, as the pain his would-be-son will feel is felt by him, along with the though of future questions that will difficult to answer.

"She may have killed Spyro's parents!"

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 **Did you pick Cyril...(gold star for you). To me it just makes sense.**

 **I'm sure Sparx and Volteer get along great though.**

 **Well, the story gets interesting next chapter, as this reunion should final be made. I might take a little longer with the next segment, as I want it to be filled with emotions both good and bad.**

 **Until then, be safe my friends, and show me your love or hate with a few words.**


	6. Sibling Rivalries

**OK...I'm gonna stop telling you what's next, cause the truth of the matter is...I don't know what's next.** **I said this chapter will be the reunion, and it is, but not exactly what I was thinking when I told you what was to come.** **I am putting this together as I go, as I do with all my stories, and I don't wanna mislead you, or myself, any further.**

 **Thank you to Dragon-Uprising, MCZ, and my newest fan Robert (FF won't let me put your actual pen name) for reviewing. I most definitely appreciate the support and inspiration you guys give with your kind words.**

* * *

 **Chapter Five – Sibling Rivalries**

It had been over a decade since the dungeon in Warfang's castle had been in use, as the war torn city has had no one living within her walls to keep locked away. All of her inhabitants, good and bad, fought to save the majestic dragon city, but were soon forced to abandoned her as the war dragged on.

Now, as the gate seals shut on the only solid cell, a black dragon stares out at his jailor.

"You will not be able to protect her from me, Spyro..." Scythe remarks, knowing it is only a matter of time before he can regenerate enough magic to slip out of this prison. "...I will have my family's revenge."

Spyro lowers his head with great depression, as Cynder's life is threatened by another dragon, and sadly by someone whom should be protective of her.

"She _is_ your family." the purple dragon whispers with trepidation, knowing he will get an angered response again for saying this, however, Scythe only rolls his eyes and sits on his hind quarters, staring down at Spyro and his tiny brother hovering by his right horn.

Whom for once is keeping his mouth shut.

"I don't know what happened..." Spyro continues, hoping this one moment he has the black dragon's attention will be the moment he listens. "...but I know that your sister helped to save us all."

Spyro recalls the moment Malefor retook Cynder's soul, while facing him in his own lair, and the fact that her love for him, for life itself, gave Cynder the will to break that hold.

"She is no more evil than you are...than I am, and I truly hope that you figure that out..." Spyro pauses, and takes a step from the steel door towards the staircase then stops and looks back at Scythe.

"...before its too late...and a good dragon dies."

The large drake returns to his feet and slams the closed gate before him with his horns.

"YOU _CAN'T_ KILL ME YOU WEAKLING!"

Spyro lowers his head again, then turns back at the now raging Shadow Dragon.

"I wasn't talking about you." he says softly, then looks over at the one he is talking about.

"Come on Cynder, lets go."

"NO!" she snaps back, stopping Spyro cold. Cynder looks up from the ground, showing the purple dragon how serious she is with a glare from her tear-filled green eyes. "I need to stay here, so I can talk to my brother."

Spyro goes to argue, but cannot bring himself to say a thing, as he understands the importance of what she has requested. He also realizes she is terrified to go up stair and meet more dragons, dragons she may have hurt. In fact, the only reason he wants her to come is selfish, as he is terrified to walk up the stairs himself.

He pads over to the love of his life, placing a very passionate kiss upon her trembling lips.

"Are you sure, Sweetheart..." he says, trying to stop her shaking paws with his own. "...I can stay down here if you want?"

"Dude!? Your family is supposed to be here already!" Sparx cries out, finally opening his mouth to be heard. He zips in between the two young dragon love birds, making sure he has his brother's attention. "Don't you want to meet them?"

"I am with my family." Spyro replies, looking dead into his brother's eyes.

In an instant, the nearly two hour older sibling recalls a barrage of memories from his youth, and all having the joy of his big purple little brother at his side. However, he also understand how he would feel if he never had the opportunity, as his life with Spyro was due only to chance.

Something he thanks the ancestors for everyday.

"I can't be selfish like that, bro." he retorts, looking down upon the ground with depression, knowing his life will change from this moment on.

"What if your real mom and dad had more than one child..." Sparx looks up, staring into the eyes he has trusted since birth. "...I think they deserve their birth right to the coolest brother on Avalar!"

Spyro smiles for a moment, but then looks down at Cynder's shaking paw in his palm.

"HEY!" Sparx barks to get his brother to focus back on him.

"I'll take care of your girl!" the six inch tall dragonfly remarks, whilst flying down to his brother's palm, and grasping Cynder's shaky paw. He struggles to lift the massive appendage, taking the burden on his own shoulders. "You go say hi to your family...I got this, _brother_!"

The weight of her fear is lifted from the purple dragon's shoulders, especially as Cynder smiles from Sparx's effort to hold her paw up. She purposely pushes down a little harder to make the tiny pain the butt brother of her love struggle a bit more.

With that, Spyro is away, knowing full well Cynder will be fine. His big brother will be watching.

Even Scythe takes notice as Sparx continues to lift his sister's paw, trying to prove his worth to the dark dragoness, and making Cynder giggle as his wings tickle her paw pads. His cold green eyes warming to the sight of an actual soft side to this beast he has feared and hated nearly his entire life.

 _She's nothing like the dragon that I watched kill you, Dad._ He says to himself, conversing with the soul of his father that he feels inside.

He continues watching this smaller, tamer version of the creature he has vowed to take revenge upon, not truly understanding what he is observing, as she begins taking orders from a dragonfly.

Her voice, soft and inaudible from so far away, sings to Scythe's heart, digging up memories from deep within the broken dragon. Memories of one of the first victims of this war when a young dragoness fought to save her unborn child, as the black egg she birthed was being stolen from the palace rookery

 _In fact...She actually reminds me of Mom._

The large black dragon watches in awe as this tiny yellow insect leads the Terror of the Sky to a window where vines and flowers grow wildly into the old dungeon. It provides them a beautiful view of the fresh new botanical gardens that are being laid around the base of the palace. Again Scythe is surprised as Cynder sniffs several of the flowers, lighting up with the joy and comfort these calming scents bring, as well as the colors that immediately overwhelm her vision.

"It's gorgeous, Sparx..." he can hear his sister say, then watches as her eyes break from the view and return to him. "...but this is much more important."

"Okay!" he remarks taking his position by Cynder's right horn as she slowly walks to the only occupied cell. "But I am not flying up his nose if he gets angry at you."

Scythe rubs the top of his snout, still feeling a slight tickle deep inside where Nina had drawn on the walls, but also relaxes knowing it's not gonna happen again, especially as the tiny insect finishes his thought.

"I promised Spyro I would never do that to any dragon...ever again." Sparx looks up at Scythe and actually nods. "I know how much that hurts and I can kill you if I accidentally go to far in."

The black dragon shows a bit of shock, but even more as Sparx adds one more line...the line that makes Sparx...Sparx.

"Besides, if you decide to act like a jerk again, I will fly into your ear where there is plenty of room for me to stretch out my wings and sing for hours."

Cynder quickly envelops the little dragonfly in a cold cloud of her Shadow breath, causing Sparx to back down from his aggressions.

"Don't make him angry, you Idiot..." she yells, then looks back at the black dragon she hopes will hear her out. "...I need to talk to my brother...to him...if he'll listen to me."

* * *

Meanwhile three flights up, and just outside the door to Spyro's sleeping chamber, a single mother of two struggles with the hardest thing in the world to do.

Keep her two boys from wrecking the palace.

"STOP IT ALREADY AND SIT STILL!" Skylar barks for the tenth time, as her children continue carrying on beside her. "We need to wait for Terrador and Kelvin! Can you guys go five minutes without fighting?"

"Come on mom!" Blake, her youngest son and most rambunctious at the moment, remarks with anger, yanking his arm from his bigger brother's grasp, then of course, shoving him back. "He started it! Why do you always say stop when I get the upper hand!?"

"Yeah OK!" Cyrus retorts while rolling his eyes, knowing he had his brother held in a tight submission hold.

Nearly ten years his senior, Cyrus can easily take advantage of his much smaller sibling. And as most big brothers do, this nearly twelve year old dragon returns his little brother to the submission hold he was told to break.

"Upper hand my butt, Dude!"

"Cy...rus!" Skylar pleads to her oldest. "Please!"

Just the embarrassed look on his mother's face is enough to make Cyrus release his brother. And again, as little brothers will do, Blake decides to get more physical towards his much larger sibling.

A very hard, very well placed tail whip connects in an area that no male should be struck. And as the three year old whelpling, whom has no clue to the pain he just caused his brother, begins laughing in Cyrus' now red face, he suddenly realizes how badly he is gonna get it.

"MOM! STOP HIM!" he barks with fear, seeing the same look he saw from his brother after he walked on his sleeping cushions with muddy paws. Blake begins to run away, but remains in one place as his paws are unfamiliar to marble

"He's gonna kill me!"

Skylar frowns hearing the tone of her oldest boy, whom has regained his breath and returns to his feet.

"Yes I am, you little pain in the butt!" Cyrus grumbles, then gives chases to his younger brother, whom has finally gotten the idea of...less talon, more pad.

"Thanks guys!" an annoyed mom remarks, as her kids begin running around like idiots "So this is how you behave for your mother?"

Neither of them can hear her angered response, as their excited yelps echo throughout the third floor.

Blake, suddenly enjoying an impromptu game of chase within the unfamiliar confines of the palace, unwisely eggs his brother on.

"You gotta catch me first, Chubby!" He remarks sarcastically, knowing he can actually win a foot race with his heavier brother. He increases his speed down the long straight-a-way of marble, pulling further from his larger less nimble sibling.

However, as his anger is real, and his privates still tingling, big brother ruins the fantasy he has allowed little brother to enjoy for most of his life.

"COME HERE YOU STUPID JERK!" Cyrus grunts, taking literally four steps to catch his little brother, then reaching down with a flailing paw to grab him.

A primal scream of fear shrieks from Blake's mouth, seeing his brother now directly behind him, and only looking angrier.

"AAHHHHHH... HELP ME!"

The young dragon begins running faster and much more recklessly, as he keeps his eyes flashing back and forth between the path before him and his flailing brother behind. His fear consuming him with every step, knowing he is going to be caught.

However, just as Cyrus gets a paw upon the lighter blue tail of his tiny brother, he suddenly releases it, and lowers that paw down to the ground hard.

Blake notices his brother's eyes open wide with a look of terror, and the frantic way in which he is trying to stop his momentum, but before he can turn his head back to see why.

The impact the tiny dragon feels is solid bringing his momentum to a dead stop. His brother then slams into him from behind, as he had no chance to brake on marble at this speed. As they both fall forward, taking down whatever they just hit, Blake quickly begins praying.

 _By the Ancestors...please tell me we hit a coat of armor, or a column, and not a living breathing thing._

His prayer is immediately answered in the negative, as a grunt is heard and the crumbling frame of a body is felt, not the solid rigid frame of something without a pulse.

The young dragon quickly revises his prayer.

 _By the Ancestors...please...don't let my Mom hear that._

However, several loud grunts of pain echo down the hallway, startling Skyler from her spot outside Spyro's door, and quickly she gets in a position to see what her sons have done.

However, nothing could shock her more then when her eyes take notice to this one moment she never thought possible.

"What the heck was that!?" Terrador barks, exiting the room he has spent ten minutes inside, pondering the whereabouts of Spyro. He and the newest Guardian, Kelvin, a fire dragon of incredible power, had brought Skylar and her children up to purple dragon's sleeping chamber for a long awaited reunion, but he wasn't there.

They now stare down the hallway where this loud crash had just spooked them both.

"Oh look, Terrador, there's Spyro!" The slightly rotund, but ridiculously strong fire breather remarks sarcastically, as he and the Master Guardian have been literally pulling their horns out, wondering where the purple dragon, they had told a dozen times to stay put, went.

From under the pile another prayer is made

"By the Ancestors...please tell me he didn't say we hit Spyro!"

His voice is actually used, not his thoughts, and this time his prayer is answered negatively by the one he trusts most.

"You ran right into him, Stupid!" Cyrus grumbles, as his brother's impact into the gold chest of the purple dragon was the last thing he saw before he slide into him.

"Well... You crashed into him too!." Blake barks back angrily, then both stop arguing as the shadow of the one they hit rises up over them. They both turn in unison, showing the purple dragon the same look of fear he's seen on his own face in the mirror.

"By the Ancestors!" the hero remarks with stunned disbelief, looking down at a navy blue image of himself from only a few years earlier, and a version of his younger whelpling self. His eyes then focus up to the other two familiar dragons, Terrador and Kelvin, whom walk over a very nervous dragoness.

It is this one unfamiliar face that he cannot take his eyes from. Her features are somewhat similar to his, and though they are nothing like the perfect match her children have to him, the dark blue eyes of this dragoness are a dead ringer for his.

"Mom?" Spyro asks, his voice trailing off, barely able to even say this one simple syllable without struggle.

Skylar, also choked up, can only nod her head up and down, allowing several tears that have already collected to fall from her face.

Spyro is forced to sit down on his hind quarters, as his euphoria makes it hard to keep his feet. He stares at her, then the kids, then her, and then the kids again, still unable to grasp the moment. His heart beats faster and faster, pounding with the excitement of this meeting, and after a minute of thunderous silence inside, Spyro rises up on his hind legs.

The purple dragon opens his arms out wide in anticipation of the first full sized hug from his mom, however, Cyrus is first to crash into the welcoming gold chest of Spyro.

The young dragon is overwhelmed with emotions, seeing a version of his father in the purple dragon before him. A father whom he has missed for the past three years.

Skylar smiles as Spyro simply folds his wings around her child, holding him tightly in a strong embrace.

"Easy friend..." the purple dragon quietly whispers, then pauses, realizing what he said was wrong. "...I mean...Easy _brother._ "

Spyro gazes down at the smaller blue version of himself, whom looks sad to be left out of this first embrace with their new family member.

The purple dragon smiles then opens his right arm away from Cyrus, allowing Blake a spot. The little whelpling quickly burrows himself in between his two older brothers, and in an instant, everything is right in the world.

* * *

 **What's next!?**

 _ **(shrugs shoulders, scratches head)**_

 **Family Stuff!**

 **There you go, a vague description of the next chapter ;)**


	7. Ghosts of the Past (part I)

**I would like to start by saying thank you to MCZ, Dragon-Uprising, Holy Cross 9, DragonMaster000, and Ethan Segovia for the great reviews. keep 'em comin'!**

 **I said I wanted to keep the chapters short and sweet( or sad, depending ), and since I couldn't fit all I wanted to say into one chapter..I give you.**

* * *

 **Chapter Six - Ghosts of the past (part I)**

For nearly five minutes brother and sister stare at one another, not saying a word, waiting for the other to start the conversation. The silence, uncomfortable, as only the soft sounds of breathing can be heard, and nothing more.

Every few moments a sigh, or an artificial cough, can be heard in the background, as Sparx watches from the sidelines. Requested to do so by Cynder, the now annoyed dragonfly is beginning to wish he kept his mouth shut when he told his brother he would watch her.

"You know, all you need to do is open your mouth and start talking, Cynder...He's not going anywhere."

The silence is broken as Sparx opens his mouth, however, he shuts it quickly as Cynder contorts her body to face him and raises her voice with a rage he's never heard her use...ever.

"YOU CAN LEAVE ANYTIME YOU WANT, SPARX!" The dark dragoness barks, then winces in obvious pain. Cynder places her paw upon the small scar on her chest and returns her body to a normal position to relieve the tension.

"I'm...I'm sorry." The little dragonfly says, lowering his head with depression, knowing he caused her to feel more pain than she does already.

He was there the day Cynder went to Warfang, as Flash told his son to accompany the dark dragon after Hunter's message was delivered to their home. Sparx then witnessed the jeers she received upon arriving at the palace, the hatred she heard while flying alongside Terrador to give that message to Spyro, and the assault that ensued the moment she ran away from her only protection.

Scythe's eyes are immediately drawn to Cynder's chest plate, and the deep bruise that she continues to rub.

"What happened?" he asks, startling his sister, as his voice actually has a note of compassion to it.

Cynder looks away, ashamed of her past and the future it has brought her, however, knowing this conversation must start somewhere, she doesn't hesitate to answer the question.

"I was struck in the chest by a large boulder." Cynder pauses, like she has done every time she recalls this fresh memory of hatred towards her, reliving the moment as if it is happening again.

"I had brought a message to Spyro...that's it, and everyone started staring at me with their rage and anger."she says, then looks up at her brother with great sadness, knowing he has the same angered look towards her that everyone else has.

"I know they all want me dead, and for some reason..." Cynder pauses again, looks at Sparx, then reveals something she never told Spyro. "... I had decide it was time to just let it happen... To let them kill me."

"WHAT!?"

The small dragonfly is directly in front of Cynder's face before she can even try to take back what was said.

"You told my brother that you got spooked, and didn't mean to run away..."

"Let her speak, Insect!" Scythe grumbles, suddenly interested in hearing what Cynder has to say, however, Sparx snaps his head around to stare down the dragon a thousand times his size.

"SHE'S _MY_ FAMILY, TOOL! YOU DON'T CARE, REMEMBER!" the tiny yellow insect yells, and to his own surprise, Scythe actually finds himself arguing back.

"NO! Little butterfly..." Scythe replies, then suddenly vaporizes into shadow, much to the surprise of both Cydner and Sparx. The large dragon reappears outside of the cage Spyro had locked him in only ten minutes earlier, utilizing the little magic he had regenerated. He then lowers his head down toward Sparx, staring down the terrified dragonfly with his steely green eyes.

"...She is supposedly _my_ sister!"

Scythe snatches Sparx from the air, then place that paw palm down upon the ground, holding Spyro's brother precariously under his front foot. However, before he can even make a threat to the small insect, the point of Cynder's tail blade is directly under her brother's jaw.

"Let him go...NOW!" She says, her green pupils fading away from her eyes, showing her brother the pure rage she has within.

An arrogant grin fills the face of the larger black and red dragon, and he simply begins lowering his foot down upon the small brother of Spyro.

"THEN DO IT!" he replies, adding more pressure to his right front paw, causing Sparx to groan in pain. His grin leaving his face, showing Cynder how desperate he is for revenge. However, to her surprise, Scythe suddenly removes his paw from Sparx's frail body, grasps her tail blade, and begins forcing it up into his own throat.

"I SAID DO IT!"

"NO! Stop!" Cynder cries, quickly yanking her tail blade back from Scythe's grasp, but her big brother's grip is too tight, as his size and strength is easily twice her own. The larger dragon begins pulling the blade back to his throat, driving the tip into his own neck, hoping to end the pain he cannot shake.

Tears begin to pour from both of their eyes, as neither can understand the feelings they are experiencing.

Scythe, seeing the sister he never had in the evil beast before him and realizing now he cannot bring himself to kill her. And Cynder, whom looks into the eyes of the only family she has known, and for once sees something other than hate.

"I cannot deal with this _shame_ anym..."

Scythe, hoping to plead his case to end his own life, cannot believe how badly this ploy backfires, as Cynder suddenly freaks out on him.

"SHAME!?" She barks, easily ripping the blade from her brother's paws, then staring him down with the same white eyes he saw when his dad was killed. However, instead of slashing the tall dragon with her tail blade, as she did years earlier to their father, Cynder leaps into the air, and whips her right rear paw into Scythe's jaw. The impact knocks him off his feet to the ground where Cynder immediately pounces on his back. She grasps his horns, driving his face down onto the hard stone floor of the palace dungeon.

"YOU KNOW NOTHING OF SHAME!" the former Terror of the Sky shrieks in Scythe's ear, the rage inside transferring from her paws to the now startled dark dragon in her grasp.

Cynder raises and slams her brother's face into the ground twice, all the while, yelling in his ear about the meaning of the word. However, quickly recovered from his imprisonment under Scythe's heavy paw, Sparx realizes he is needed to calm down the moment, two sweet.

"CYNDER! STOP IT!" he yells, flying directly before her raging white eyes. He flails his hands to get her attention, hoping she'll stop slamming her practically unconscious brother's face against the ground any further. However, as her white eyes suddenly lock upon him, the tiny dragonfly begins back-pedaling fast.

"I mean...ahh...only if you want to."

The raging dragoness returns her attention to her brother, snapping his head around to look him dead in the eye.

"I feel shame every living moment of my life!" Cynder grumbles with anger, then suddenly loses her edge, seeing an image that hunts her. She slowly backs off, staring at Scythe's now terrified expression, and quickly starts trembling with fear.

She can remember the same look in his eyes from three and a half years earlier, and the fear a slightly younger black dragon had when the Terror of the Sky took his father in battle.

"I see the pain I've caused this world, when I look into the eyes of all those I hurt." she continues somberly, then breaks down crying, recalling every life her dark side ended.

"And I see the eyes of the ones I took from them, every night when I sleep."

Sparx stares at Scythe, whom just stares right back with the same helpless expressions as Cynder loses control of her emotions. But of course, knowing he must try to do something, Sparx flies before his best friend's betrothed, and smiles for her.

However, before he can say anything comforting.

"I'm sorry." Scythe says softly while grasping his sister from behind, then forcing Cynder down on her stomach. The tall dragon is compelled to lay down atop the shuddering dragoness, trying hard to stop Cynder from shaking and crying so violently.

Scythe lowers his head down, smothering Cynder into the ground further, just like his father would do when he was afraid.

Sparx does nothing to stop him, seeing exactly how Spyro would cover and comfort Cynder.

"I was so very wrong to say what I said to you." Scythe confesses, stroking his paw softly down the black dragoness' neck several times, hoping to calm the rapid pulse he can feel pounding through her scales.

"Please stop..." he whispers, his soft voice soothing the emotional dragon, as he speaks to her with a gentleness she only hears from Spyro, or his family. "...you don't deserve to feel this way anymore."

Scythe slowly gets off Cynder's back, then eases her back up onto her feet, standing the dark dragoness upright before him.

"You are _not_ that beast I had feared..." Scythe continues, startling Cynder as he lunges forward and grasps her tightly in his arms, finally realizing what he has in front of him.

"...you are _..._ my sister."

* * *

 _The fires burning throughout Warfang were intense, but that wouldn't stop her from making it to the palace, to her unborn child. The city, now under full siege from the ape army, had fallen fast, but as the rookery sat upon the highest tower, hope still kept this one Shadow dragoness moving forward._

 _With stealth and cunning, the black and scarlet red chested drake takes a strategic path to the tower, staying within the darkness of shadow and smoke. However, as her green eyes lock upon Ignitus, flying hastily from this tower, a small purple egg in his paws, this mother realizes she must start moving faster._

 _Uncaring of the attention she will draw, knowing she must go now is to save her precious black egg, this sleek, fast-moving dragoness takes to the sky._

"I watched a single arrow fly from their leader's bow...striking mom in the back as she reached the perch of the rookery...but that didn't stop her from going inside."

Cynder, with tears in her own eyes, places a paw upon the outstretched arm of her brother, as he begins to stammer his words. He pauses for only a moment, taking in the comforting touch of a family member for the first time since his father's death.

"I tried to help...honestly, Cynder, I tried...but I was only nine years old." Scythe becomes even more emotional, looking down at the one they took from his mother, from his family, from him.

"I ran as fast as I could to get there, only to find an arrow in my chest as I reached the rookery doors..." The large drake then lowers his head, staring at the spot on his chest that still gives him pain, and the scar that remains after fifteen years. He slowly raises his head, clears his throat, and recalls the worst moment in his life. "...I got close enough to watch them rip your egg from mom's lifeless paws, and they simply walked away with their prize."

Cynder becomes nauseous, thinking how her life could have been so much different had her mother succeeded in saving her. However, this feeling fades as Scythe makes an odd comment, and a sudden calming thought occurs to a dragoness who thought her life was specifically made to suffer.

"I was so thankful."

 _Thankful?_ Cynder thinks to herself, but before she can argue this choice of words.

"I was terrified, believing they were going to just smash it on the ground, like the rest of the eggs. But when they put it in a special case, I knew I would have a chance one day to rescue you." he continues, making sure she understands why he used that word.

Scythe pauses, grasps his sister paw, knowing what he is going to say next is not going to be received well.

"That was, until the day you returned..." he says, tightening his grip on her paw, then looking dead into her eyes. "...and I had wished from that day on...they had smashed you on the floor and ended it there"

Again, before Cynder's mood can change, Scythe yanks the paw he has in his grasp, pulling her chest to chest with him.

"But now I can honestly tell you how very _thankful_ I am...that they didn't."

Brother and sister hold each other, both taking the comfort they have longed for from family.

The moment lasts for only a moment, but covers years of pain in this one gesture of love. However, even feeling the kindness and comfort of Scythe's embrace, Cynder has only one thought, and sadly she expresses it aloud.

"I wish they did."

Scythe backs away with shock, holding his sister tightly before him in his now outstretched paws.

"WHY!?"

* * *

 _It was cold that night, even colder than the night before, which he thought was the coldest temperature Avalar had ever recorded_. _Yet, that is why they where there. No one would find them in the Norse Mountains, as the temperatures were colder than even the frostiest Ice dragon could withstand._

 _Well not really._

" _Dad!?" a young blue dragon remarks, his voice as loud as his chattering teeth will allow, which he raises higher to get over the even louder sounds of the wind that rips through the trees_

" _At what point should I start worrying about frostbite?"  
_

 _The larger of two drakes laughs at his son, knowing his boy is kidding, since his mother's bloodline is strong with him._

" _Are you trying to get under my scales, Cyrus!?" the larger orange and black Earth dragon replies, his voice distorted by a dozen small icicles that cover his round bulbous nose. He looks back at his son, whom seems content to stand in the deep snow._

" _I can go back to the house and let you get the firewood by yourself tonight?"_

 _The young dragon is intrigued by this offer, as his father never lets him out of his sight. A sudden desire to say 'yes' crosses Cyrus' mind, but that desire is quashed in the thought of being alone in the dark._

 _He quickly shuts his mouth and stops his fake teeth chattering._

" _Sorry, Dad..." the Ice dragon remarks, stepping beside his father, and opening his wing against the wind to block it. "...I was just trying to_ fire _you up."_

 _A strong laugh is given again by a proud father, knowing his son has a great sense of humor, even as they struggle to live in a harsh wilderness._

"It was just another winter night in the mountains..." the twelve year old dragon remarks, looking at the one who reminds him of his father as he recalls the worst moment of his life. "...and dad was miserable, like usual..."

Cyrus looks over at his mother, whom stops cleaning her youngest child in anticipation for bedtime. She shows her oldest a look of disapproval, so does Blake, as he was enjoying his bath. But, before Skylar can voice her opinion about her husband's 'attitude'.

"Though, he'd never let you know he was upset, Spyro, cause dad always had a smile on his face." Cyrus continues, returning his eyes to the purple dragon after an approving nod from mom.

He grins seeing the same smile that would normally reside on his father's face now staring back at him from his older brother. However, his eyes suddenly break focus, and his head lowers into a great depression

"He was the best father in the world, and I only wish you could have met him." the adolesant dragon begins to cry as his memories return to this one cold night that will haunt him forever.

"If I had just said yes..."

"Cyrus!" Skylar barks, startling everyone but Blake as she snaps her older son's name out in anger.

"Stop that!"

Mom grasps her youngest son and places him on the large sleeping cushion that Spyro supplied from his huge pile. The little blue whelpling makes one full revolution on the pillow, then lays down facing his family, his paws crossed in anticipation of their conversation about the father he never met.

"You know damn well nothing would have changed..." Skylar grumbles, as she has first hand knowledge of what happened that day."...your father would have been watching you like a hawk, and the same outcome would have happened."

Spyro gives his biological mother a look of confusion, so Skylar decides to explain.

 _Father and son gathered wood for almost an hour, making sure to bring enough to last through the long cold night. And though there was an abundance of trees in the mountains, after nearly ten years, a wide swath had been cut into the forest, making it a longer walk back to the cave chosen as a home during the war._

 _Nothing was different from any other day... or so they thought._

" _HELLO!?" a voice calls out, startling both Cyrus and his father Blake. Even more so, as two black dragons step out from the shadows of the dense forest half a mile away._

" _Can you help us, friend!?" the younger of two pleads, his voice strained as he continues adding his noticeably limping companion._

 _Blake and Cyrus immediately drop their supplies, taking to the air to get to the two dark drakes faster._

" _NO!" the black dragons yell, waving their paws to stop the aiding pair from climbing any further into the sky._

" _DON'T FLY!" one barks, as the other yells. "GET DOWN!"_

"I ran out of the cave in time to see a dozen arrows fired from the treeline." Skylar recalls vividly to her oldest son, Spyro, with perfect detail, remembering everything about the day her husband died.

"Your father grabbed Cyrus and held himself between the volley, then solidified to stop the arrows..." She says, and immediately Spyro's brow raises up with shock.

"He turned to stone in mid-air!?"

The purple hero's question is answered with a simple nod, as Skylar goes back to describing the worst day of her life. Cyrus also lowers his head, as this next part, he believes, is the reason his father is no longer alive.

"He returned to normal before hitting the ground, but he landed on his right flank and wing..." Skylar pauses, as Cyrus cries from the memory of his father's yelp of pain. She goes to console her son, but doesn't get the chance, as Blake Jr is already off his cushion and at his brother's side.

Mom smiles as junior rubs his head under Cyrus' jaw, lifting his brother up from the depression he was heading for.

"Needless to say... Your father was at a huge disadvantage when the assault began."

 _A dozen large apes suddenly enter the open area from the dense forest, all of them redrawing their bows for another volley._

" _Go now, Cyrus..." Blake orders his boy, rising back to his feet and grimacing for a moment as he draws his broken wing back "...get to your mother and help her defend the egg...Understood!"_

 _With a simple nod of his head, Cyrus takes off running towards the small cave he's lived his entire life, corralling his mother back inside as he has been taught to._

 _His nerves making his teeth chatter as he stands beside his mom, terrified as these two black dragons join up with the patriarch of their family to defend against this unknown threat._

" _What are those things mom?" he asks, as this is the first time he has ever seen an ape, since they have never ventured this far north._

" _Trouble" she replies, looking back to the blue egg with black accents she labored to produce only a day earlier._

"I was still exhausted from giving birthto my baby..." Skylar remarks, placing her paw upon Blake Jr's right side, then running that paw up his neck to his horns, where she gives a little rub. Mom then takes her other son's muzzle in her paw, removing it from Blake's supporting stance below him. "... and that's when my hero jumped into action."

"Cyrus carried me away, Spyro!" Blake suddenly remarks, then runs from his big brother's side to his bigger brother's side. "Just like that other dragon did for you!"

The purple hero rubs the spot on the young whelpling's head where his mother just got a pleasant response, and he receives the same smile and slight purr a dragon will give when happy.

"I only did what dad taught me to do..." Cyrus chimes in, his voice still depressed and barely audible. However, as his eyes snap up to his brothers, the young adult shows how angry he really is at his choice. "...and because I left him alone... he's gone."

"I told you to stop saying that!" Skylar barks, showing her middle child a look she only shows him when mom is truly angry. "You are not to blame for what happened, Cyrus. If you went back out there, I would have had to buried both my husband and son. Your father did what he did to protect you...to protect us."

Mom gestures her paw at Blake, making sure Cyrus understands the worth of what he did.

"I would have been alone to fend of the countless ape raids that took place after _she_ left, and more than likely, would have been killed without your protection." Skylar continues.

Tears quickly form in the eyes of a mother whom remembers the wounds she needed to mend over and over, as her oldest son fought to protect his mom and his unborn brother.

"This family is alive because of you!"

Cyrus just lowers his head, however, he is not the most depressed dragon in the room, as Spyro's ears caught the emphasis his mother used on the word _she_. He also watched her eyes, which flashed a very anxious look upon the purple dragon as she spoke that one word.

"It was Cynder that attacked you...wasn't it?"

Spyro's voice is barely heard, and without even nodding her head, he knows the answer is yes.

Skylar takes a few moments, trying to think of what to say, but only one thought continues to burn in her mind. In fact, she has been going over and over this thought within, since learning, only an hour ago, of who Spyro has a love interest for.

"How can you be with her?" she whispers with a broken voice, then begins to cry. Her tear-filled eyes turn to the one she first gave birth to, pleading for an answer.

"You don't understand what she did..." Spyro begins to reply, but a distraught wife and mother finally loses control of her emotions, hearing Cynder being defended by her own blood.

"She killed your father!"

"No she didn't, Mom." he says, and quickly Skylar's paw is across his jaw.

* * *

 **I know what you're thinking... What an _A hole_...How dare I stop there, huh?**

 **So, I'm an _A hole. ;)_**


	8. Ghosts of the Past ( part II )

**Wow...I'm Mclovin' the response everyone. Over two thousand hits and 26 reviews in two months. I can tell you that, even as a heart patient, I feel unbreakable.**

 **A great big thank you to MCZ, Dragon-Uprising, Holy Cross 9, and DragonMaster000 for their continued support.**

* * *

 **Chapter Seven – Ghosts of the Past (part II)**

 _A thick heavy snow began falling, which swirled around in the strong mountain winds, creating near white out conditions. However, with eyes like a hawk's, Blake easily follows his son's path as he runs for the safely of the cave._

 _The large Earth dragon winces as he turns about, confronting the two strangers that seemed to have brought an small platoon of the Dark Master's ape army._

" _Why are they this far north?" Blake asks the two new comers, wondering if they have anything to do with the sudden arrival of this threat "These bastards have never ventured into the mountains before!"_

" _I don't know where they originally came from..." replies the younger of two, lowering his slightly larger companion down gently onto his lame leg, so that he may take rest himself. The sleek black and red chested drake then answers to the best of his knowledge "...but they have been chasing my father and myself relentlessly for over a thousand miles, so I don't even know where we are anymore."_

" _Please, my friend, we need your assistance." the older and more exhausted of the two remarks, showing off the arrow lodged in his right flank. His blue-green eyes practically scream of the pain he is feeling, but he makes sure the large orange dragon understands their full plight._

" _My son Scythe and I have been moving non stop for nearly three days, and they will not stop giving chase." He remarks with a heavy strain on his voice as the blood lost from his wound is making him woozy._

" _I'm sorry if we placed your family in danger... That was not our intentions, but we are desperate for a break and figured our tolerance to cold would give us a better chance to find refuge." He pauses as the small army of twenty begin emerging from the brush, all beginning to draw their bows. He returns his tired eyes to a fresh pair, hoping for any support in this hunt._

" _Please, you must know this land well..." the elder dragon continues, seeing the lived in look of the area. "... are there any crystals that can help us regenerate, cause we are completely spent on magic and strength."_

"'Follow those foot prints to my home' he said." Scythe recalls, then looks down at his sister, showing his best smile. "and bring back enough for all three of us."

Standing in the garden that has breached the dungeon wall, the large black dragon takes a moment to compose himself after the first part of his story by taking a great whiff from a massive sunflower. Scythe practically purrs with the delight of an aroma he hasn't had a chance to experience in years, then devours the entire bloom in one incredibly enjoyable bite.

"Umm...I wouldn't do that again." Sparx remarks, as he remains hovering by Cynder's right horn, however, she quickly raises a paw to keep the dragonfly's mouth shut. She knows it is illegal to destroy, or eat, the royal garden, but understands the way her brother just took down this plant, as she too has a great interest in those large yellow flowers.

"Just help yourself." she says and suddenly Scythe's eyes open wide and return to her.

"And that is exactly what his wife said."

 _As fast as he could run on three paws, Scythe took back as many green and red gems that he could hold with one arm, cradling them against his body with his wings._

" _I have a dozen each!" he calls out to his father and Blake Sr., whom hide behind a monolith of granite the stone breather yanked up from the ground._

" _That's good, my friend." the orange drake remarks, pointing to the ground by Scythe's father. "Toss them right there!"_

 _Knowing exactly what that means, the now nearly twenty year old shadow dragon throws open his wings, allowing all the gems to fly from his grasp. Most hit the ground, sticking up from the snow without damage, however, several smack the large rock that Blake Sr. pulled out of the ground with his last bit of magic._

 _A cascade of red and greed shards fly out in all directions, then suddenly stop in mid air. They seek out the dragons starving for power below and move towards them at great speed._

" _Oh! Yeah!" both drakes remark, as the shower of broken crystals pepper their tired bodies, refreshing all aspects of their lost energies._ _The remnants of crystal that don't absorb into two full sized adults quickly envelop Scythe, raising his magic and strength to near full as well._

" _Good boy!" his father remarks, drawing a sour grin from his adult son, whom hates it when his dad treats him like a child. So, his next words, practically incite the black and red chested dragon into an uncontrollable rage._

" _Now stay back here and keep an eye on the crystals."_

" _WHAT!?"_

"He was so protective of me..." Scythe recalls, looking down to get a mental picture of the single father who raised him for a little more than eleven years before meeting his fate. He then looks upon Cynder, who he has blamed for his father's fate for the last three. "...he was so protective of his _entire_ family."

"I couldn't stop myself, Scythe." Cynder whispers, knowing exactly what her brother is speaking about, as his part of the story now hooks into what she remembers from that day. Her green eyes tearing up, as she recalls the only creature who showed her compassion, and how her master forced her to strike when she didn't want to.

"I didn't want to hurt him."

Scythe quickly envelops his sister in a tight embrace as she breaks down crying. He looks over at Sparx, whom also sheds a few tears himself, upset to see his friend so distraught. However, as Sparx is who he is, the little dragonfly opens his mouth and asks.

"What happened?"

Scythe tightens his grip on Cynder, as he finds himself compelled to answer, and knows she will begin shuddering harder. However, to him, this moment in his life has been the most helpful in mourning the loss of his both of his parents.

"The Terror of the Sky appeared..."

 _With rage, Scythe watches his father disappears before his eyes into the shadows, leaving only a stunned Earth dragon to show his anger for being left behind in battle. The black and red dragon rocks back into the snow on his butt, and crosses his arms over his chest._

" _I sure hope you don't treat your son like this when he's twenty!"_

 _The large orange Earth mover grunts out a smile, then follows the black dragon that reappears on the other side of the solid granite monolith._ " _It's cause he loves you, young dragon!" Blake remarks while running, knowing he would tell his son to stay back until he was fifty, like all fathers would for their kids._

 _Scythe rolls his eyes, then turns them towards the battle, that does not last long._

 _Now at a huge disadvantage, as both dragons that approach are fully powered, the twenty ape soldiers begin to panic. They fire wildly at the pair, instead of in a controlled group, allowing the two drakes a path to advance and attack._

 _And that is what they do._

 _With his ability to use the Shadow Realm to jump from place to place, the simian army find themselves firing at smoke and mirrors. Then after the pain of coming up empty comes the pain of being skewered by a stone projectile, as Blake flanks and targets the apes left helpless._

 _It is efficient and quick, dropping nearly half of the army in their first advance._

"Mom an I thought it was over, especially when the remaining apes started running..." a younger voice remarks in the soft candle light

Cyrus, laying next to his now snoring brother Blake, nudges him onto his side, then covers him with his right wing. The small blue whelp remains motionless on the cushion he and his brother occupy, falling back to sleep instantly.

The young adolesant then looks over to his mother, whom also lies motionless on the pile of cushions Spyro normally sleeps upon, resting peacefully after being given a sedative. Skylar became hysterical the moment her paw struck the purple dragon's face and was inconsolable even by her children.

The dark blue dragon takes comfort that she is out cold, as he returns his eyes to the one he is speaking with.

"...but that's when _she_ came...and everything changed."

"You talking about Cynder...Right?" Spyro asks, and shockingly Cyrus shakes his head no.

"That was not _Cynder_..." he replies calmly, then looks at his mom, making sure she is not faking her slumber. He then smiles, seeing the confused look on his new brother's face, knowing what he will say is going to make him feel much better. "...I have seen pictures of this Cynder you hang out with, and I can tell you for certain, she is not the dragon who killed my father."

Cyrus pauses again, then turns and stares at his mom, making sure once more that she is sleeping. And only after the young drake confirms it twice, does he continue with his reasoning.

"Yeah...you can tell just by looking at her, she is not the same..." Cyrus continues, as he saw the one that ruined his life, from a secret room dug into the mountain by his father, where he corralled his mother and unborn brother away from danger. He turns his eyes to his big brother, showing the confidence in what he is saying. "...but what really gives it away are her eyes, Spyro... it is her eyes that tell me she is not the one."

A deep breath of comfort comes from the purple dragon, hearing how his brother understands the damage done was not by Cynder's paw.

"They're green now...and not white." he says, thinking he knows why Cyrus has made his choice, however, the younger brother lowers his brow in anger.

"NO!" He says almost arrogantly, then looks up at the lone picture of Cynder, that hangs from the wall above his now snoring mother. He then returns his attention to Spyro, whom awaits his reply with a certain eagerness.

"Her eyes being green has nothing to do with what I see in that picture, and in every other photo I have seen of her." Cyrus remarks, getting up slowly so not to disturb his little brother, than grasping the small picture Spyro had taken of he and the dark dragoness. Cyrus lowers back down, draping his wing back over his younger brother. He then lifts his tail gently to close his mother's jaw, stopping her snoring with a soft touch. The dark blue Ice dragon's last move is to place the photo before a smiling Spyro, whom now sees himself in his brother.

"Look at her...Cyrus says, pulling Spyro's attention from him to the picture, and making the purple hero grin wider seeing the only photo of Cynder where she is smiling. "..she is happy."

Cyrus suddenly turns the picture from Spyro, and makes sure he sees what he sees before saying it. "And yet...you can tell she is still terrified."

"Dude..." A very young voice remarks from under Cyrus' wing. "...Mom is gonna kick _both_ of your butts if you keep talking about her."

Big brother lifts his wing, showing off the wide open eyes of an annoyed blue whelpling. Blake Jr. quickly rises to his feet, looks at his mom, then stares down the brother he's known his whole life.

"If you wake her up, and she hears you defending Cynder..." Blake pauses after saying that word, then looks at his mom to make sure she didn't hear him. After being sure she is sleeping, his eyes find their way back to Cyrus. His voice, however, comes out a lot softer than before. "...she's gonna crack you across the mouth too... and a lot harder than she hit him."

Spyro rubs his jaw, still feeling the impact of Skylar's paw, which he did not defend on purpose.

"Wow! She can hit harder than that?" the purple dragon remarks, his voice drenched in sarcasm. However, before he can continue with a joke about his biological mother's power.

"You're surprised at the strength of a single mother, Spyro?"

Her groggy voice startles all three of her sons, whom turn to look at Mom's eyes when they open.

Blake immediately drops to his stomach, yanks his brother's wing back down over his body and starts snoring.

"Mommy! I was sleeping and they woke me up." he complains, breaking the tension quickly as Skylar smiles inside.

"I heard." she replies with a sturdy tone and Cyrus suddenly feels his heart beating in his throat, especially when mom stands up on the pile of cushions where Spyro placed her.

With a bit of hesitation to her first step, as the sedative in her body still lingers, Skylar stumbles down off the pile of cushions and grasps the photo still held in her son's paws. Her tail flicks up from the ground, stopping just short of Cyrus's jaw, before gently caressing his wide open mouth shut, like she felt him do to her a moment ago.

It is what woke her up, and she intently listened from that moment on, trying not to move a muscle while her son confessed feelings she knew nothing about. Skylar looks down at the photo of Cynder and the son she never met until today, then glares at Spyro in the flesh.

"You think you see fear in _her_ eyes, Cyrus?" she asks, giving the purple dragon a look of anger, before snapping her eyes to the son she has consoled through countless nightmares for nearly the last four years, and showing him and even more angered stare.

"Mom! Please! I was only... Ahhh..."

Skylar grasps Cyrus' rounded snout tightly, her claws digging into the bridge of his muzzle as she pulls him nose to nose. She stares through her child, watching as the fear brings tears to his eyes. However, and to the shock of both Spyro and Cyrus, Skylar suddenly kisses her son directly upon the nose.

"They are not as scared as your eyes are right now, baby." she remarks, her smile shining within as her son continues to stare at his mother with complete disbelief. Skylar then looks at Spyro, whose mouth slightly opens from shock as well, but she raises her tail up gently across his mouth to keep it closed.

"Or yours."

"I'm not scared, Mommy. Cause my eyes are closed and I'm sleeping" Blake suddenly remarks from under his brother's wing, and again Skylar laughs inside. However, this time she cannot keep the joy within, and both Spyro and Cyrus watch her mood switch in an instant.

Skylar smiles on the outside, then looks down at the portrait again, the same portrait her fading vision locked upon as she passed out on Spyro's bed.

"I see the same thing..." she remarks, replacing the picture that her son removed from the wall to its rightful place, then returning her eyes to Cyrus'. "...but, this is just a picture..."

Skylar turns to Spyro, showing him the same sudden look of anxiousness he saw before getting slapped across the mouth.

"...I want to meet her..." she continues, sitting on her front paws to show she is in control of the emotions that overwhelmed her earlier. "...I need to see those eyes are for real, Spyro...Please."

Concerned for the one he loves, the purple dragon asks why she wants to met the dragon that killed her husband and is quickly met with a harsh response.

"Because your _mother_ asked you, young dragon!" A strong male voice remarks from the door, and quickly a green and a blue dragonfly are before their son's face.

"If your mother wants to met Cynder..." Flash continues, grasping Spyro's right nostril and staring his boy down. "...you say 'yes Mom', and DO IT...like I taught you!"

"Like _you_ taught him!?" Nina remarks snidely, and Flash drops his angered tone, looking to his wife with a bit of embarrassment.

"Well, like your _mother_ taught you..." he says, then looks back at the purple dragon with his angry eyes again. "...but I was there too, so I have a say in this...understand me!"

Spyro raises a paw, crushing his foster father to his round nose in a solid embrace.

"I understand Dad, and I will do as I'm told, like a good boy." his voice shows his love, and his sarcasm all at once. However, as his eyes turn to the one who gave him life, Spyro's concerned voice returns. "But I am worried about doing this now."

"Why?" Skylar asks, wanting her own explanation, and Spyro is quick to reply.

"Because I love her, Mom..." he says, showing Skylar the same fear that she saw in Cynder's eyes in the photo. Spyro then looks down at his younger brother, whose wing is drawn back by his even younger brother, and the tears begin to fall.

"...and I don't want to have to chose between her and them..." Spyro continues, placing his paw on Blake Jr's head, and gently scratching it to produce the same smile he has already come to enjoy watching him make. He then looks to his biological mother, staring into the same eyes he sees in the mirror, only blue.

"...nor do I want to lose you."

Skylar quickly lunges forward to embrace her son, placing her cheek against the one she slapped, and whispering in Spyro's ear.

"Listen to me...and listen good. No matter what you chose, Spyro...I love you." she says, then kisses the spot she smacked, before leaning back to look her newest, but oldest, son in the eyes.

"And I will always love you, cause you are one of my children."

Skylar raises her right wing, signaling her boys to get up and come over to her side, which they quickly do. The youngsters are immediately encased in her wings and the arm she raised up to hold them tighter.

"A parent should always love their children unconditionally..." Skylar continues, then glances at the two dragonflies that raised her oldest. "...as I'm sure your mother and father have, even when you did something wrong...or something they cannot understand."

Flash and Nina both nod their heads, recalling moments when their patience was put to the test by Spyro and the other trouble making part of their brood.

"Yeah...and It's amazing how fast they can point a finger at the other." Flash remarks, looking directly into Spyro's eyes, before hovering over to Skylar's right horn. "But no matter what they did to get under our skin, it only made us love them more."

Skylar shows a slight smile again, but then looks down before opening her mouth, finishing her thought to the son she wants in her life.

"Even when our kids say the hardest things we can hear, forcing us to do the most unthinkable acts." Skylar continues while looking at the paw that she has around her othr children, the one she put across Spyro's face I anger.

"I will still love you, and I hope that you understand whaaaat."

Spyro scoops his startled mother up in his arms quite easily, hugging her tightly against his chest.

"Of course I understand, Mom..." the purple dragon looks behind his mother at the ones who raised him, singling out Nina with his now tear-filled eyes. "...cause, in every way possible, you are just like...my Mom."

Both mother's begin to cry, hearing the love and dedication he has for both of them, however...

"Wow, Spyro..." Blake remarks, scratching his head while looking at his mom and Nina with a comparing eye. "...I didn't know you're as blind as a Manweresmall."

* * *

 **Of course Skylar will accept Spyro's word, but what will happen when she actually meets Cynder...stay tuned to find out.**

 **R &R**


	9. Under my Wing

**Happy Thanksgiving everyone and enjoy the festivities that tomorrow will bring. Unless your family is annoying, or you have to work for 15 hrs, like myself.**

 **Thank you for the continued support, and again a special thanks to the usual suspects, MCZ, HolyCross9, and Dragon-Uprising.**

* * *

 **Chapter Eight – Under my Wing**

After nearly three hours of intoxicating conversation with the son she just met, and still feeling the effects of the sedative given to her, Skylar begins yawning repeatedly. In fact, all three dragons who are still up past the witching hour, are now having difficulty keeping their eyes open, as they wait for Cynder to retire for the night.

Only Blake, whom is already sleeping under his mother's wing, is not struggling with staying awake.

"I'm starting to get a little concerned, Mom. Cynder should have come back over an hour ago." Spyro remarks, after another dragon passes by his sleeping chamber door without it opening. However, as his brother's voice suddenly calls out, the purple dragon rises to his feet.

"Thank you, Master Terrador...You have a good night too!" Sparx replies to the one who walked by his brother's room.

Spyro is stunned as the door stays closed and his tiny yellow brother slips through the key hole.

Sparx is also surprised, seeing his big purple sibling is still awake.

"Spyro? It's like one AM...why are you still up?" he whispers, noticing his mother and father sleeping comfortably on a cushion beside him, as well as the young whelpling uncovered when Skylar rises to her feet.

"We're waiting for Cynder, you idiot!" Spyro replies hard, but also with a soft voice, so not to disturb the ones that are sleeping. However, as Sparx was supposed to be watching her, the now angered purple dragon increases his voice slightly.

"Where is she!?"

Sparx eyes wander around the room and quickly return to his brother.

"She's not here?"

In a heartbeat, Sparx is snatched out of the sky by his brother, whom now holds him directly before his white eyes.

"You said 'you got this' bro!" he grumbles a bit louder, and Nina is quick to respond

"You two better stop making all that noise, or you'll wake your father." the tiny dragonfly opens her eyes, staring at her child, and Skylar's child, whom she still considers her own. "And trust me boys, there will be hell to pay if I have to hear it."

Both brothers stop bickering immediately, then look over at their mother with a bit of embarrassment. Spyro releases Sparx and both cringe as their father jostles around several times before continuing his soft snore.

"You..." the purple dragon mouths without sound, pointing at his brother with a very sharp talon, then pointing that very sharp claw towards the door Sparx just came through. "...outside! NOW!"

Again, no sound comes from Spyro's mouth, but the way he acts speaks volumes. However, the tiny yellow dragonfly seems unfazed by this anger and flips off his brother before simply heading towards the door.

An irate Spyro follows quietly behind, drawing the attention of a very stunned mother.

"You need to teach me that..." Skylar asks while looking over to Nina, whom winks at her. She then looks over at her own children. "...I can't get these two to be quiet when their sleeping!" Skylar continues sarcastically, getting a laugh from the green dragonfly and a snicker from a now overly tired Cyrus.

"I'm being quiet!" he foolish barks out loud, startling his little brother from his slumber, as well as a very grumpy dragonfly.

"SPYRO! SPARX! Your mother said QUIET!" Flash yells, then looks over at the cushion where his son was laying before. Shock fills his eyes seeing nothing but an empty pillow, and even more so when both of his boys call out to him from the other side of the room.

"We're over here Dad!" Sparx retorts and Spyro follows up with "Yeah... We didn't do it this time!"

Both brothers continue their journey out the door, as their conversation is going to get loud, and Flash just grumbles several times about not being in his own bed before falling back to sleep.

Regardless of how tired she is, Skylar decides to get up and follow, wanting to hear this conversation. She looks down to her children, whom both look at her with tired eyes.

"Keep an eye on your brother, Cyrus..." she says, then looks at Nina, whom has raised her first child as well as any mother could have done herself. "...and if they get out of control while I'm gone, you have my permission to discipline them."

"Oh! We will..." Flash grumbles, then looks up at the young mother with an angry pair of eyes. "...especially if they keep waking me up!"

The blue dragonfly's head is back down on the pillow

"He's all talk, sweetie..." Nina remarks, as Skylar shows how stunned she is to her. "You go on ahead. _I'll_ make sure that your babies are fine."

The dark blue Ice dragoness is reassured by this simple statement, knowing how well she did to raise Spyro. She looks back at her children, whom both have fallen asleep, and simply slides Blake under his brother's wing.

"I promise I won't be long, but I must meet this Cynder he talks about." she says while heading to the door.

"I must see if my husband's murderer is really dead."

"Can I come, Mom..." Cyrus remarks, standing up on his unstable legs, and staring at his mother with a pair of half-eager/half-tired eyes. "...I want to see too."

"And _I_ want you to stop moving around on the cushion I'm sleeping on, Dude!" Blake remarks, as Cyrus steps on the pillow near his brother's face, jostling him from his slumber. The small dragon then reaches up, grasps Cyrus' wing, and yanks it down to cover himself. "Now give me this...it's cold in here!"

Skylar and Nina smile hearing the young dragon yell at his brother is such a cute way. And Flash, whom wakes up and stares down the boys, also smiles, as Cyrus does as he's told.

"Wow...They're just like those two bickering idiots outside the door." Flash grunts, then kisses his wife before putting his head back down again. However, as Spyro's voice can be heard yelling, followed by Sparx's voice, which is even louder, the blue dragonfly finishes his thought with a smile.

"And just as loud as them too."

Skylar's tired eyes open wide as the voices begin getting softer, moving away as the pair head down the hallway. She looks back at her children, whom are already sleeping, then back to Nina, who smiles her fear away.

"I'll watch them, Skylar." she says confidently, knowing this single mother is still worried about leaving her two most prized possessions in a strange place, even if it is her son's room.

"Go on, sweetie, you need to meet her."

The dark blue dragoness smiles, then looks at her children once more before heading to the exit.

"Wait for me!" she calls out after opening the door, putting a smile on Ninas' face as Flash wakes up again.

I told you, Honey..." the angry dragonfly grunts, looking his wife in the eyes as the door slams shut, causing an even louder noise then Skylar's voice. "...being loud and obnoxious is a _Dragon_ thing."

The room settles down and soon everyone tries to go back to sleep again, however, after only a minute, several pronounced sniffing sounds begin filling the air.

"Cyrus!?" Blake queries from under his brother's wing, hoping he has yet to pass out cold, and with a simple grunt, the young dragon knows to ask his question.

"When was the last time you washed your wing pits?"

Cyrus lifts his right wing off his brother, then grasps him by the left horn.

"OWW!" Blake cries, as his big brother unceremoniously yanks him out from under the warmth of his wing, then holds him before his very tired and angry blue eyes.

"You can freeze now!" he says.

"Yeah! but I'll be able to breathe." Blake replies, and waves a paw before his nose.

Cyrus drops his little brother, wraps his wings around himself, and goes back to sleep.

Blake, having slept for the past few hours under his mother's wing, is no longer tired and decides to heads towards the balcony for fresh air. However, he stops after only a step, noticing the smiling green dragonfly, and the angry blue one, staring at him.

"I'm sorry if I disturbed you again, Mr Flash sir. I promise I will not say another word if you don't yell at me...like my brother always does." the young dragon smiles as Cyrus' eyes open wide again.

"I DON'T YELL AT YOU!" he barks, then looks at the dragonflies whom stare at him with stupid grins, especially as his brother starts giggling.

Cyrus, knowing he is overtired, just lets his little brother win this battle of sibling idiocy, and goes back to sleep.

Wide awake, the younger dragon finds himself alone in this moment, and more so as he turns to the only other occupant in the room he can get a rise from. However, he has also closed his eyes.

 _Crap...now what am I gonna do for fun?_

"Are you okay young one?" Nina asks, as the small blue dragon takes a step towards the balcony with a dejected look. Knowing she is in charge of the boy, the experienced mom asks a follow up immediately afterward. "Do you want some company while you get some _fresh_ air?"

Blake smiles at the green dragonfly, but quickly shakes his head.

"No thank you..." he replies, then looks at his brother with a snide grin. "...I just wanna get that _odd_ smell of nasty wing sweat out of my nose."

Blake ducks as Cyrus blindly whips his tail in the direction of where he last saw his annoying little brother, but he does not open his eyes. Nor does he try a second attack when his tail comes up empty of impact. In fact, as Blake watches his brother prop his head up onto the small orange scale at the end of his tail, he knows the darker blue dragon is truly tired and just wants to go to sleep.

"Night, Cy. Love ya, bro." The younger drake is sincere with his words while again heading for the balcony.

"Yeah! Yeah! I love you too, now good night already." big brother replies in a groggy, annoyed tone.

Nina's heart melts watching the two brothers, as they remind her so much of the first kids she raised, and with nearly the same size difference.

"They're so much like our boys." she says, waking Flash again with a gentle kiss.

"I want another one, honey."

Cyrus' eyes open wide, and he gives an odd look to the couple whom finish a very passionate kiss.

"Yo! Blake! Wait up, bro!" the older sibling remarks, quickly getting up and following his brother's path to the balcony door

"We're not gonna do it _now_!" Flash barks as Cyrus looks at them with a pair of disapproving eyes. He then stares at his wife as the dark blue Ice dragon never says a word, leaving the room with great haste.

"Great! He thinks we're just a pair of horny insects."

Out on the large balcony, that connects to Spyro's room, Blake looks down on the city, three stories below him. His young eyes taking in all the splendor of Warfang, having never seen it before today. In fact, neither of them have touched a single talon down on the cobblestone streets of the dragon city until today.

They have been told about Warfang since birth, but nothing could prepare them for the glorious view the new city has to offer, especially at night.

The subtle glow of candle and torches bathe the streets in a flickering light, but it is the brightness of the two moons shining on the city, enhanced by the crystals built into every structure, that makes the entire city visible without power.

"By the Ancestors." Cyrus remarks as his eyes first see the rainbow of colors that reflect from every rooftop. "I've never seen anything so beautiful."

"That's what I said..." Blake returns, then gestures his paw over the railing he's leaning on. "...until I saw this!"

Cyrus, still enamored with the view, takes his time to make his way across the large balcony, looking around in every direction, trying to take in all the glory of this incredible view. However, when he gets to the railing his shorter brother is leaning over and gazes down.

"Ho...ly crap!"

"And that is also what I said" Blake remarks as he looks down with his brother into the vast palace garden.

A myriad of color, even more impressive than the countless prisms of light that shine from the buildings, fill the blue eyes of both young dragons. The aroma is also intoxicating and strong, wafting all the way up from three stories down, and barely losing any of its potency.

The two brothers continue staring, astounded by the views in every direction.

"You know what I can't understand, Cyrus..." Blake suddenly remarks, still gazing at the garden this balcony was built to observe, then pointing at another building that will not have this vantage point. "...that is our brother's new home.

The young dragon carefully pivots on the railing, allowing him to look his brother dead in the eye.

"Why in the name of the Great Ancestors would he move from here to there!?"

Cyrus gives his brother an odd look, as he was sleeping during the moment Spyro was discussing the construction of his new home, directly between the palace and the University where he has been given a job teaching.

"How did you hear that?" he asks, and Blake quickly backs out of his brother's reach.

"Cause Mom's wings aren't crusty like yours, and I can hear through them."

Cyrus balks, then turns his annoyed eyes to his little brother, whom backs up another step or two.

"If my wings are crusty, it's because of your nasty skunk breath, Blake..." he retorts, then raises his left wing and gives a sniff. The dark blue dragon cranes his head towards his brother, then backs away after another very pronounced sniff.

"Oh yeah, that's definitely your breath I smell."

Blake gets angry at this very moment, knowing his big brother ate his share of mint leaves this morning. However, with anger in his eyes, and not the six-inch wide railing he's balanced on.

"Aagghhhhhhhhhhhhh!" the young dragon yelps as he loses his footing, falling over the ledge nearly sixty feet above the garden.

"CYRUS HELP!"

Big brother is already leaning his body over the railing Blake fell from, reaching for the little paw his brother dug into the solid granite balcony to stop his fall. However, it is just out of his reach

"Open your wings Blake."

"I CAN'T..." he cries, looking down and back up again. "...IT'S TO HIGH!"

Cyrus knows his little brother is still learning to glide, let alone fly, and smacks his palm against the rail his brother is hanging from, sending a vibration through his paw.

"YES YOU CAN...NOW DO IT!"

The little dragon gulps his saliva, knowing he is going to drop from a perch three times higher than anything he has ever tried to leap from. However, with his brother there for support Blake does as he's told.

"Good..." Cyrus says, then looks down for a place he can guide the novice glider. "...now when I say go, you let go and allow your wings to catch the air like mom taught you. I will catch you if you start falling fast...I promise."

The young dragon shows how upset he is at this proposition, hearing his brother tell him no matter what, he is going to have to drop. A single tear of fear falls from his face, but then the youngster's strength rises to the surface.

"You'll catch me if I start falling too fast?" he asks half-heartedly, knowing his brother would never let him fall from this high.

Cyrus smiles, seeing Blake's trust play out quickly, as he begins looking around for a place to try landing. And after spotting the same soft bed of poppies his brother eyeballed, the young dragon looks back up to the one he has thought of as a father and nods his head.

However, he still speaks to him as a brother

"I swear if you let me hit the ground hard Cyrus, I will kick you even harder in _that_ spot."

Big brother smiles again as he leaps off the balcony, hovering over the top of Blake with his arms crossed.

"It'll be hard to kick me in the nuts with four broken legs, Bud, so shut up and listen, or you will fall hard."

As a frequent flier since the age of four, Cyrus knows his little brother's wings are not developed enough for full flight, by they can still do the job that is necessary.

"Open those tiny things and count to three!?" he orders, then puts his paw up to stop Nina and Flash, whom have come out to investigate the yelling they heard.

"Please! Stay back..." he says to both dragonflies, whom show great concern on their faces, until he smiles and finishes his statement "...my brother needs to learn how to do this on his own."

They hear the younger dragon yelp and quickly fly over the ledge to get a better vantage point.

"ONE!" Blake calls out while spreading his tiny wings out wide, a fear-filled tone in his voice as he continues. "TWO!"

Blake pauses, looks up at his brother and shows confidence in his eyes, knowing he would never let him fall...but still makes sure he understands

"I swear, I _will_ hurt you, Cyrus..." he says with such seriousness that big brother balks for a second, but quickly refocuses the moment Blake releases the railing he is clinging to and yelps. "...THREE!"

The wind catches the small blue wings of the three year old whelpling, slowing him down, and turning him slightly to the right.

"Adjust your left wing a little." Cyrus remarks from above and Blake quickly heeds his brother's words, turning his left wing to compensate for the wind.

"Now try flexing them both back more to take in that wind."

"I can't!" Blake cries, as his muscles have yet to develop enough to move his wings in that direction, however, to his own surprise, he curls them slightly.

"HEY!" the youngster suddenly cries out with joy, feeling lift for the very first time in his life.

"HEY!?" his brother also says, as he was not expecting Blake to rise up at all. He crashes into the young dragon, causing both of them to fall from the sky.

"OH CRAP!" Cyrus barks out, seeing the ground approaching so fast, but what scares him most is seeing his brother so far out of his reach.

"BLAKE..." he yells as his young brother begins to panic and flails his arms and legs down to stop his momentum "...FLAP YOUR WINGS!"

"HELP ME, CY!" the young whelp cries, seeing the ground is now only feet away and closing very fast, but the teen dragon knows he has no chance of getting to him in time.

"NOOOOO!" Cyrus barks, pin-dropping as fast as he can to position himself between his brother and a violent impact.

However, just as both drakes reach the tops of the sunflowers, they suddenly disappear into a fog of black smoke. The nauseating feeling of falling is suddenly replaced with an odd sensation of being immersed in ice water.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Cyrus remarks with surprise as his stomach softly impacts the ground in a grove of gigantic sunflowers. Even more shock fills his eyes, as they open, seeing his young brother shivering in his front paws.

"BLAKE!?" he yells, standing up on his hind legs and surround his brother within his wings to warm him.

"Come on, Little Guy! Wake up! Everything is fine!" Cyrus begins to say, then notices the shadow of two dragons standing before him. He quickly looks up, knowing one of these drakes must have stopped their descent, however, nothing could prepare him for the shock he gets upon seeing his saviors.

"Holy Shit!?"

Cyrus drops his brother, stunned stupid by what his eyes behold.

"I remember you!" he remarks with complete disbelief, seeing the black and red drake that took nearly half the crystals he and his father had gathered for winter four years ago. His eyes then lock upon Cynder, who was with her brother eating the sunflowers, and who he had long thought kill both strangers, along with his father.

"But...I thought she killed you?" Cyrus continues, his voice filled with even more doubt, seeing them together. However, before an answer can be given

"CYRUS!?" Skylar's voice calls out, followed by the rustling of the sunflowers where they are standing. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING DOWN HERE?"

She looks her son up and down, quickly noticing the large bulge of her child wrapped under his wings. "AND DID YOU JUST USE A BAD WORD IN FRONT OF YOUR BABY BROTHER!?"

* * *

 **Again, Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I wanted to keep this chapter light-hearted for the holiday. (while still moving the story along)**

 **Hope you enjoyed.**


	10. Tiptoeing through the Tulips

**Sorry for the delay in posting, but I had taken a few days for family.** **Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and didn't eat too much.**

 **Thank you to my devoted fans Dragonmaster000, HolyCross9, MCZ, Dragon-Uprising, and Robert Madden for the reviews.**

* * *

Chapter Nine -Tiptoeing through the Tulips

Built initially by a group of Manweresmalls, who worked on rebuilding the palace, the Warfang Gardens, which now cover an acre and a half of prime real estate beside the castle, are no longer the responsibility of the black-thumb-having construction workers. In fact, the millions of flowers, bushes, and trees are now cared for by the new owners of this land, whom will soon call this small piece of the city their home.

One of the annoyed, half tired, keepers of the garden now circles around the sunflowers that have their tops missing, showing the anger of having her dedicated work destroyed.

"I should have just ripped his damn brain out of his left nostril when I had the chance!" Nina grumbles, looking upon the row of nearly a dozen headless blooms. She turns to her husband, who also has a bit of anger in his eyes, but not as much as his green-thumbed wife.

"I'll make sure Spyro takes care of that, Honey." Flash replies quietly, then places a single finger before his lips to hush his wife's rage. He then points that finger towards the most uncomfortable stare down he has ever been witness to.

"But right now...I think you should be quiet."

Nina gives her husband such a look of disgust, but oddly, he smiles back at her.

"Yeah...that's pretty good, Babe..." he remarks, then returns his eyes to the two dragonesses that remain nose to nose. "...but you have nothing on how angry Skylar looks right now...so I would settle down."

Nina balks for a moment as her husband is completely unfazed by the look that normally makes him cower before her. Intrigued, the green dragonfly finally looks upon the scene as well, and just like her husband, she too becomes entranced.

"DON'T LOOK AT HIM! LOOK AT ME!" Skylar barks, as Cynder's eyes leave hers for a second, seeking her purple savior for any help. Everyone jumps with the exception of the dark dragoness, whose eyes are quickly back to the lavender-blues of a very angry widow and single mother.

Again, nothing is said for a few tense moments, until finally.

"Leave us alone for a moment." Skylar's voice is soft but stern and everyone pays heed to her instructions.

Her children are first to back away from this confrontation, as they can see and hear the resolve they know all about.

Scythe, who also knows a bit about this blue dragoness, backs off just as fast, but gives his sister a pat upon the side and some encouraging words.

"Just be yourself, Cynder." he whispers, getting Spyro's attention, as this black dragon is still on his radar of suspicion.

The purple dragon takes the longest to leave, as he becomes conflicted in the moment. His love for the dark dragoness is greater than any power he feels inside, but yet he cannot disobey the one who gave him life.

He gets between them both for a moment, looking Cynder in the eye.

"Just remember how much you did for the world... and how much I love you." he says, then grasps her tightly in his arms, whispering the last part directly into her ear.

"She will not hurt you, I promise."

The purple dragon then spins around, looking directly into the angered eyes of his mother.

"You'll find the truth, Mom..." he says, then takes Skylar in the same very strong embrace he just gave Cynder. "...I trust you with her life, as I would trust you with my own. Cause I know you will see what I see...when you finally decide to look."

"And what do you see when you look at me, Spyro?" Skylar asks, and her newest son's eyes suddenly speak volumes as they soften.

"A mother who didn't deserve the pain she was forced to endure, but still found a way to live and raise two incredible sons..." Spyro is interrupted by Blake, as he begins yelling at his big brother.

"You dropped me, You Big Jerk!" he barks a the top of his lungs, then hushes his voice knowing everyone in Warfang probably heard him. A wide smile crosses the purple muzzle of the great hero, and he places a soft paw upon Skylar's cheek.

"Their love for each other is a testament to your strength..." he says, then turns his head around to look at the only dragon he has ever _loved_...until this day. "...and I know you will find that same strength in her."

Spyro watches Cynder stop shuddering at that moment, and with a quick peck to her cheek, he walks away confident in leaving her alone. The purple hero then strides over to the other black dragon, whom remained within eye contact of his sister, and physically pushes him back into the brush. The scuffling sounds last a few seconds, then complete silence fill the ears of both dragonesses.

The uncomfortable feeling returns, as does Cynder's shudderingl, even more so when Skylar gets up and inches even closer than she was before. Instinctively, the Shadow dragoness brings her tail around to defend herself, but quickly stops as the single mother flinches at the sight of the three foot long blade that graces its tip.

"I'm sorry..." she exclaims with fear in her voice, drawing her tail back behind and out of view. "...I didn't mean to do that!"

Cynder knows this blade is what she used to kill Skylar's husband, as the memory of his death is now playing over and over in her head.

The blue dragoness, still showing a stunned look in her eyes, quickly rises up on her hind legs, easily looking over a much smaller Cynder.

"That is what you used to kill him...isn't it?" she says, then lowers back down to a four paw stance, getting eye level with the one who took the love of her life. She stares hard into the green eyes of a broken soul, enjoying the struggle that seams to be ripping the insides of her most hated enemy apart...until.

A single tear develops in Cynder's left eye. It builds quickly, then falls down her cheek to the floor.

"I couldn't stop him..." she says in a near trance-like state, and Skylar watches as Cynder's eyes lose focus, drawing upon the memory that haunts her more than most.

"...he made sure I killed them both."

 _After the small ape army retreated from the two full strength dragons, Blake Sr. found himself in a solid embrace with a grateful father_

" _Thank you, my friend! Without your help, my son and I would have been killed by these soulless bastards." The large black and gray chested drake remarks, his words coming from deep within._

" _Think nothing of it." Returns the larger orange dragon, whom breaks the embrace, and grasps the paw of the dragon that helped protect his family from the threat. "The name is Blake, friend...and I would lay down my life to help a fellow dragon, especially in these difficult times."_

" _Blanca." replies the black dragon, finally able to make his introduction as well. And as most who hear that name, a strange look crosses the face of the orange dragon._

" _Blanca!?" Blake replies, his brow lowing down with a questioning expression._

" _Doesn't that mean_ white _in the native tongue of the Southern ..."_

 _Blake's voice is suddenly hushed by an intense pain that shoots from his back to his front, leaving both dragons stunned silent, but in radically different ways._

 _Black smoke begins surrounding Blake, leaving Blanca completely spooked, especially as a familiar face emerges behind the Earth dragon._

" _Scythe!? NO!" He cries with disbelief, seeing a black paw develop from the Shadows and wrap tightly around the orange throat of his new friend. He watches his son's arm draw back the large dragon's body, revealing the tip of a sharp blade that pierces out from his black chest._

" _What are you doing!?"_

" _I am not who you think." this dark drake replies with a raspy female's voice, quickly allowing a father to know his son of twenty years is not the one he is looking upon, but confusing him more, seeing a dragon that looks like himself._

 _He watches in great horror as Blake's eyes go blank, then witnesses the strength and power of this new dragoness as she flings a body twice her weight away with great ease. At the last moment, this evil dragon yanks her tail blade out of the dead Earth drake's back, swinging it back to the throat of the one she was told to kill._

" _And now, it's your turn...Dad."_

"It was Malefor, wasn't it?"

Skylar's voice snaps Cynder out off her flashback, and she stares at her for a moment, lost in the memory of what she was forced to do.

"What?" Cynder asks. A confused tone in her voice as Skylar's question didn't register, nor does she remember the context of what she was talking about. The blue dragoness understands this momentary mental lapse, as she feels this same out of body experience every time she speaks of her Blake

"The one who made you kill my husband was Malefor, wasn't it?"

Cynder's head drops with deep depression, knowing her pain has been caused by someone else, and nothing she can say will ever convince the ones she was forced to hurt.

"I couldn't stop him. He was always in control of my movements." she whimpers, looking down at the silver shackles and choker that were painfully bonded to her wrists and neck just days after hatching. These shackles that would allow Malefor to command his prize from the Realm of Convexity, steering her to his ultimate goal of freedom and the destruction of Avalar.

"It was a way for him to make sure I was loyal...by making me kill my...Daddy "

Skylar suddenly feels bad for the one she has hated for roughly the past four years, and sits down before the now crying black dragoness. She reaches out a paw, grasping Cynder by her shoulder, causing the Shadow dragon to flinch.

"Easy, young lady..." she says, reaching her other paw down to grasp Cynder's wrist, and drawing that paw up closer to her eyes. "...didn't my son promised that I would not hurt you, or do you not believe him?"

A sort of crooked smile appears on Skylar's face, as the black paw in her grasp stops shaking. Oddly, she becomes very proud at this moment of the son she never met, knowing first off, that Spyro has in fact killed the evil inside, as he had told her. And also, that her son has gained the trust of this very shy and very powerful female dragon.

"You are nothing what I expected, Cynder." She says, giving a quick glance at the permanent fixtures on her wrist, grimacing upon seeing how they are physically embedded into her arm.

"I truly wanted to hate you, but I find myself feeling sorry for what happen to you."

Cynder's eyes open wide, suddenly feeling Skylar's paw rubbing her shoulder in a gentle and caring way. She quickly looks up at her, stunned to see a full smile upon her face.

"You mean...you believe me?"

Her voice is so questioning that Skylar's smile increases, hearing the humility of someone truly begging for forgiveness, like one of her children would. However, she does voice her true reason for taking Cynder's words at face value.

"No. I believe what my son told me." She returns, taking full stock in what Spyro had mentioned over the past few hours, and the dedication she had to him while bound by the neck. Skylar stares deep into a pair of green eyes that suddenly light up with hope, showing off that spark of life only the purple dragon gets to enjoy.

"But now, I think I see what he sees too."

From the other side of a large rose bush, three pairs of eyes gaze through hundreds of vines and red blooms, trying not to be seen by the dragonesses they spy upon.

"That a girl, Sis." Scythe whispers, startling an already stunned Spyro, whom thought his confrontation with the dark dragon would quickly become hostile, especially after he literally dragged him away from his sister by force

"I could have sworn you said you were going to _kill_ Cynder." the purple dragon remarks with a touch of sarcasm in his voice, glancing back and forth between the scene that he cannot believe, involving his biological mother and his love, and the dragon that he thought he would be forced to kill himself.

"What the hell did she say to you?"

"I told you, Little Bro..." Sparx chimes in, still trying to cover his failure of falling asleep and losing track of Cynder's whereabouts for a few minutes. "...he is not the evil and vicious dragon you thought he was."

Spyro gives the tiny dragonfly he never really doubted a hard stare, shutting him up with just this look.

"I knew he wasn't _evil,_ Big Bro..." Spyro replies, showing a smile to Sparx, and allowing him to finally relax. The purple dragon then turns a more confused smirk to the brother of Cynder. "...but I'm still wondering why the sudden change of heart?"

Scythe chuckles, also glancing back and forth between his sister and her hero...and his hero.

"Because the dragon I came to take my vengeance upon is already dead." A smile fills the face of the one who looks like the Terror of the Sky more than Cynder herself, as he turns back to Spyro again. "And I have _you_ to thank for that, my friend."

Scythe stretches out a paw and it is quickly taken by the purple dragon.

"You don't know how happy it makes me to hear you say that..." Spyro replies, showing a very snide grin to the dragon that could give the purple hero a difficult time in battle. "...cause I was not looking forward to another encounter with you."

"Most don't!" Scythe replies, grinning arrogantly

"Ahhhh...Modesty!" Spyro retorts and both drakes laugh again.

However, the two are suddenly jolted from their moment as Blake rips through a large bush and goes to pass in between them.

"Beep Beep...coming through!" he yelps with an almost jovial tone in his fear, looking back over his shoulder to see if his brother has gotten back up yet. His voice gets even more high pitched, seeing his angry sibling is not only up, but is now just a dozen feet behind him.

"MOM! HELP!"

"COME HERE YOU LITTLE BRAT!" Cyrus grunts, limping a bit awkwardly as he runs. "I'M GONNA SHOW YOU WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO GET KICKED THERE!"

Spyro and Scythe, seeing both Cynder and Skylar startled from their conversation, quickly take action.

The purple and gold chested drake grasps his little brother as he tries to slip through the rose bush they are standing behind. He easily corals the barely hundred pound whelp with one paw, ending his momentum abruptly.

Scythe, on the other hand, steps into Cyrus' path, taking the nearly one ton dragon into a cloud of Shadows. Both drakes emerge in the same place a few seconds later, only with Scythe's arms and wings wrapped around a now shivering cold Ice dragon.

"Sorry Mom...I'll take care of this!" Spyro barks out over the rose bush, allowing her to return to an important conversation without interruption. He then picks his disoriented little brother up in one paw, holding him before his slightly annoyed eyes.

"Are you like this all the time, little guy, cause I already have one very annoying tiny brother to deal with?" Spyro remarks, glancing at Sparx as he finishes this statement, and drawing a single finger salute from his older brother.

Blake, still stunned from the impact to Spyro's solid paw, just shakes his head no.

"Yeah right..." The smiling purple hero remarks, pecking the youngster on his head, then placing him back down on the ground. "...I'm sure your a wonderful little brother, considering how well you treat him."

Both Spyro and Blake watch as Cyrus is unfurled from Scythe's wings, allowing the shivering dragon to fall free to the ground.

"By the ancestors! That's ridiculously cold!" Cyrus remarks, his teeth still chattering from the bitterly freezing temperatures within the Shadow realm. However, as his eyes lock upon his little brother, and the pain of his tenders return from the numbness of cold, the blue Ice dragon heats back up.

"Come here, you little..."

Scythe, still standing behind Cyrus, uses a more physical touch to keep the older dragon from getting to his feet by placing a very sturdy right paw down in the center of his back. He keeps the raging blue dragon pinned on his black stomach, then lowers his head down to Cyrus' ear.

"Stop acting like a fool, or I will leave you in that realm for more than three seconds."

Cyrus, knowing he has no chance of over powering the one holding him down, quickly lays still, staring his brother down with great anger.

"Just wait till I get a hold of you, Blake..." Cyrus grunts, however, he quickly stops talking as Scythe adds more weight to his right paw.

"You're really not helping your cause?" the black dragon nearly twice Cyrus' size remarks with a bit of an annoyed voice. Scythe then digs his claws in to the hard scales of the dark blue dragon and yanks him to his feet.

"Settle down and let your mother and my sister talk, or I will be the one that kicks you in the plums."

Cyrus' eyes open wide, and he gives this dragon he remembers well a very serious look.

"After what I did for you? You would really do that?" Cyrus returns, putting a very confused look on Spyro's face, especially as he watches the large Shadow dragon back down.

"Wait a minute! What did you do?" he quips not knowing this part of the story his mother was telling him about, as she never knew either. However, the one who lived this moment is quick to answer his brother.

"I saved this guy's life..." he says, then shows a bewildered look himself, realizing at this very moment, he really did save the life of a stranger that brought trouble to his home. Suddenly, an overwhelming amount of pride begins to envelop the young adult, whom brushes Scythe's paw from his back with a strong flap of his left wing "...so you should start showing me some respect."

Scythe looks over at Spyro, whom grins, watching his brother stand confidently against a dragon easily twice his size.

"All you did was spook her..."

"Yeah! Long enough for you to run away!" Cyrus' voice gets a bit louder and his posture a bit more aggressive.

"I thought she was going to kill me, after you ran away and disappeared into the shadows..." he continues, reliving the moment after he saw his dad killed, then ran outside to confront his murderer. Cyrus looks over at his mother, and a younger version of the dragoness he saw take both his and Scythe's father.

"...but that is when it happened, and I saw the pain I see in her eyes now."

" _NOOOOO!" Cyrus yells after watching his father fall. He leaps from the high hiding spot his dad had carved into the side of the mountain years ago, diving full speed at the black dragon he just gave a bunch of crystals to._

 _The young dragon, filled with the raw emotions of seeing his father slain, builds up an elemental attack the likes of which he has never used. However, before he can unleash this power, he watches the black dragon raise the blade he used to kill his father against the throat of his own father._

 _It is at this moment when Cyrus realizes this cannot be the same dragon, seeing the long blade that took the life from his dad is connected directly to the tail of this evil monster, then watching in horror as that blade is slashed across Blanca's throat._

" _DAD! NOOOOOO!" Scythe yelps from below him, confirming what Cyrus already figured. The young dragon follows the quick path of this black dragon, and watches from above as he confronts this new threat._

 _The fight lasts no more than a few seconds, as Scythe is taken down quickly by a dragoness honed for battle._

"I Fired the largest Ice Projectile I could muster." Cyrus remarks, looking over at Scythe, whom was also startled by the huge icicle this young dragon released from above.

"And that's when I took off running, cause it scared the hell out me!" Scythe adds, then looks at his sister, who with Skylar, has walked over to the rose bush everyone is standing behind.

"I was scared by that too."

Cyrus jumps at the sound of Cynder's voice, as he never saw her, or his mother, sneak up behind him.

"I nearly jumped out of my scales." she continues, looking down at the dragon that almost ended her life three and half years earlier and showing him a grateful smile.

"But that is what made him lose his grip on me." she says very somberly, reliving this one clear moment of her past, when Cynder's overwhelming emotions could no longer be held in check by Malefor. Several tears fall from the eyes that are so painfully familiar to Cyrus, as he felt the same pain when he saw his own father laying motionless.

Cynder softly whimpers, then takes a deep, non-cleansing, breath while looking down at the blade that was permanently bonded to her tail.

"And I got a chance to see what I had done...with my own eyes."

Spyro begins to burrow through the thorn filled bush between he and his love, hoping to take the sadness she feels now by simply standing beside her. However, before the purple dragon can make his move, Skylar's wing is quickly draped over the black dragoness' back, allowing Cynder to calm down faster.

"It'll take time, young Lady..." Skylar whispers in her ear, then looks over the rose bush at her inspiration. A deep feeling of pride overwhelms the single mother as all three of her sons smile at once, showing how time does bring moments of ultimate joy, even after such a devastating pain.

"...you just need to give yourself that time."

Spyro is totally overwhelmed by how quickly his mother has changed her mind, and suddenly feels compelled to burrow through the rose bush for a hug. However, it is at this moment his other mother makes her presence known

"Go _around_ the bush, Sweetie!" Nina grumbles quietly from above, wiping the tears from her eyes, proud of the dragon she raised until this moment.

She and her husband remained out of the way in this family's reunion, but is still steaming about the row of headless sunflowers. The green dragonfly quietly buzzes over to the large black dragon, whose breath is hinted with the blooms she spent weeks to bring back to life.

"When I get done giving your sister a big hug for being strong today..." Nina whispers, then pauses for the moment when Spyro grasps his biological mother in one arm and Cynder in the other. Her heart melts seeing the love she helped him learn how to feel now being given to his new family.

"...I want to talk about all those sunflowers you decided to eat."

The black dragon shows a bit of shock to the one who flew up his nose once, hearing an almost evil tone in her voice again. However, as both Cyrus and Blake Jr. tare a path through the rose bush, joining in a family hug, Nina's scowl returns.

"I only ate two..." Scythe says with a smile, pointing a talon to the other black dragon in the garden of priceless flowers.

"...you should ask Cynder about the other _ten,_ when you give her that big hug."

* * *

Well, the reunion is made and the family seems to still have a strong bond. Now it will be time to test the strength of that bond...but how?

You'll have to wait and see.


	11. That's My Girl

**Since I'm not sure if I will post another chapter before Christmas, I will say it now. Have a safe and Happy Holiday everyone and enjoy this fun chapter as my gift to you all.**

 **Thank you Dragon-Uprising, MCZ, HolyCross9, and 00 for the reviews.**

* * *

Chapter 10 – That's my girl

It's another gorgeous morning in Warfang, and the youngest dragon of the family was again enjoying his slumber out on the balcony of his brother's new home.

He couldn't understand why the purple dragon would think of moving from that incredible room in the palace, as the view the balcony gave of the garden was second to none. However, after the first night he spent out on this terrace, watching an amazing sunrise that was no longer obscured by the palace itself, Blake understands now why Spyro moved across the way.

He has slept out on this balcony for nine straight days, welcoming the sun every morning as it comes up over the Forbidden Forest, allowing him to start each morning of his new life with inspiration. And best of all, he can still see and smell that garden, which seems to fill the entire city with a clean and refreshing aroma every day.

The subtle glow of sunlight begins seeping through his eye lids as dawn breaks, slowing telling Blake that it is getting close to that time for him to rise and shine. However, before the light can take its effect, the young dragon can feel a wing draped over him, shading the first light from his face.

"Thanks Cynder, I was hoping for another hour of sleep..." he remarks, recognizing the gentle aroma of vanilla, much like the bottle of scented oil he left outside her sleeping chamber. A very pronounced sniff comes from under the red membrane of her left wing. "...and now I can get that nap while enjoying my favorite dragoness' company, along with my favorite thing in the world to smell."

The black and red dragoness is startled, thinking Spyro had left the small jar with a tiny pink bow, but soon figures it out and smiles. She has noticed how enamored Blake has become with her, as even Spyro has mentioned how the young whelpling seem to follow her around the house.

"Well that's too bad..." Cynder replies, using her paw to rub the top of Blake's head. "...I'm only going to be here for about fifteen more minutes"

"WAIT!? WHAT!? WHY!? Where are you going!?" the three year old drake cries, crawling out from under her red wing. He quickly rubs the sandman from his eyes, then shows an angered look to the slender dragoness he was expecting to stay with him, like she has every day for the last week.

"You said we were gonna go flying later today."

"I'm sorry, Blake...but I meant Spyro and I are going flying today?"

Her voice and eyes show the youngest brother of Spyro that she is upset to have ruined his plans for another long morning of conversation with his new best friend. However the smile on her face tells him a slightly different story.

"I told you I was going flying with my boyfriend for like the last few days, buddy."

A tear nearly forms in his eye, but the young dragon quickly holds himself, making sure he remains strong.

"I was hoping, just maybe..." the shy whelp slowly returns a smile to this beautiful dragoness, whom he has become very smitten with, as Blake has found many common interests since he, his brother, and mother moved into the same dwelling with Cynder and Spyro. "...that you were talking about me."

"You are so adorable." she replies, scooping the youngster up in her arms, and giving him a very strong kiss on the cheek.

"I'll tell you what..." she continues, turning him around to look at the sun. Cynder then lays down on her stomach, holding the tiny dragon in her front paws. She gently lowers her head down between Blake's horns, covering him from head to tail with her long graceful neck, allowing him to feel her pulse beating strong throughout his entire little body.

"...you can be my boyfriend for the next fifteen minutes, and we'll watch the sun come up together."

The young dragon gives a little whimper, but quickly calms his emotions, proud in the fact that he is watching another beautiful sunrise with his new girlfriend...if only for fifteen minutes. The two remain peaceful and motionless, just admiring the view and the company of each other, until suddenly a loud buzzing noise disrupts the pair. And shockingly, it is not the obnoxious insect who they had both thought.

Just a simple bumble bee, whom now circles around the two drakes, enjoying the sweet smell of vanilla himself. The buzzing becomes persistently more and more annoying, disturbing the peace that both dragons were enjoying.

Cynder, after another pass by her right ear, decides to take action, flicking her tail around to shoo the large bee away. However, it does little to dissuade the pesky pest from leaving, and the dark dragoness gets a bit more aggressive in her attempts to move this buzzing little brat along.

She turns her tail sideways and uses it as a racquet, swatting the fat insect from the sky, sending it over the balcony ledge. The blade of her tail, after making a small ting noise contacting the bee, pings loudly as it hits the stone surface of the balcony. Cynder can feel the young dragon jump under her neck, and she raises her head up off of him as he stands up in her arms.

"I'm sorry!" she says with worry in her voice, as Blake backs away a step. "I didn't mean to scare you, Sweetie."

" _You_ didn't scare me, Cynder. That was just really loud." he replies, quickly running back to her red chest and laying down directly in between her front paws again. She wraps them around the two tone blue whelpling, positioning him to watch the sunrise with her once more.

"In fact...you are the least scariest dragon I know" he continues, craning his head straight back to look up at Cynder's strong jaw. "I actually find you to be a bit of a softie and don't understand how anyone can be afraid of you."

Cynder turns her head down, showing off her pearly white teeth that glow brighter every second with the rising sun. The young dragon is quickly entranced by the gleam of her smile and the sparkling of her green eyes.

Without warning, Cynder snaps her tail around and places the blade that is as long as Blake himself beside the young dragon. His eyes quickly focus upon the steel knife that most Avalarians fear.

"So this thing don't scare you." she asks, and Blake is even faster to grasp the razor sharp blade, holding it's mirror-like surface next to his muzzle. He examines his teeth, checking to see what is stuck in between them, then picks a small piece of broccoli out with his talons.

"Thanks Cynder!" Blake remarks with a grateful tone, placing the large blade back on the ground. "That was driving me crazy all night."

"Well maybe you should have brushed your teeth properly, like Mom told you to do." Spyro remarks, startling the youngster whom was not expecting his big brother to be up so early.

The purple dragon slowly strides out on to the balcony, taking in the view his baby brother finds much more enjoyable than the one the palace balcony gave. He gently kisses Cynder upon the check, and whispers softly.

"Good Morning, Sweetheart."

Spyro, after greeting his love, looks down at his little brother to greet him with a soft peck upon the top of the head, like he has the last eight mornings. However, he is surprised to see the young blue dragon staring up at him with a very angry look on his face.

"Hey bro, Cynder's with me right now!" Blake states adamantly, getting up on his hind legs, placing his front paws on Spyro's gold chest, then giving a forceful shove.

"Are you serious with this?" the purple dragon replies, however, Cynder decides to have her own fun and corals the youngster in her arms. She gently kisses the top of Blake's head, before looking back at her true love with a very sarcastic grin.

"Excuse me...but my boyfriend and I were trying to enjoying a sunrise together."

Spyro gives his girlfriend such a look as she returns her young admirer to his stomach then lays back down upon him. A heart melting smile fills Cynder's face, showing how much she enjoys Blake's company, and Spyro gives in.

The purple dragon lays down beside the new couple, placing a wing upon the back of his true love.

"Eh hem!" Blake grunts, glancing at his big, big brother, an even angrier expression on his face. "She didn't ask for you to keep her warm. Did she?"

Spyro balks again, and even more so as Cynder opens her wing to brush his away.

"No! I didn't, babe." she says, kissing the top of Blake's head once again before rubbing it softly. She looks at her true love, showing Spyro how much fun she is having at his expense, and continues to add fuel to this fiery whelpling's ego. "In fact, I have all I need to keep warm here in my paws, so please keep your wings to yourself."

The purple dragon is dumbfounded for a moment, but quickly heeds both of their words, and places his golden orange wing back against his flank.

"Well I was just trying to be helpful." he says with a bit of an attitude, not completely understanding why his true love would be acting so odd. However, after seeing Cynder mouth the words 'I'm sorry', the purple dragon understands that she is just playing. He looks down at his little brother, whom he realizes now has a huge crush on his girlfriend and decides to have his own fun.

"I mean, don't you think she's too big for you, Tiny."

This line, meant to be an insult to the size of his brother, immediately backfires in the hero's face.

"You think I'm _big_ , Spyro?" Cynder asks with the same attitude he had, and quickly the purple dragon's eyes open wide and his mouth slams shut. He just stares at her, unable to pull out the paw he just shoved down his throat long enough to speak. However, when he does produce a few words in a panic, Spyro suddenly wishes that he kept his paw in his mouth.

"NO! NO! NO! I don't mean big, like you're fat. I meant that you're too old!"

Dead silence fills the air as Cynder stares him down and Spyro immediately starts sweating.

"Can I please start over, Sweetie?" he asks with a great deal of hope in his words, then simply stands up and walks off the balcony.

Cynder chuckles to herself hearing Spyro curse himself out just inside the door. However, Blake also becomes nervous and stands up for his big brother.

"I didn't mean to get him in trouble with you, Cynder." he says in a panic, fearing he will lose his brother's love for causing this rift.

"He's not in trouble, Blake..." she replies, kissing the tiny blue nose of this remarkable little whelpling, and falling in love with Spyro all over again, as he reminds her of the small purple dragon she first became emotional for. Both turn to the door as Spyro returns, this time with a small box in his right paw. "...because my sweetheart knows exactly how to get back on my good side."

Spyro bows before her, opening the small box and revealing the most prized possessions he has.

"TRUFFLES!?"

Blake's mouth is immediately pinched shut by Spyro's free paw, as he offers his love the mushrooms he never parts with.

"Quiet!" the purple dragon barks, showing little brother a very angry expression. "I will toss you from this balcony if you wake mom, and she comes out here for the last of my..." Spyro pauses, looks back at the door making sure no one is standing there, then looks back at his brother. His voice is very hushed as he repeats the word

"...truffles."

With his mouth pinched shut, Blake watches as Cynder inspects the box for the largest one. She quickly removes it and places it in her mouth, smiling as the first few taste buds experience the flavor most dragons long for.

"That's not fair!" Blake muffles through his brother's paw, believing he has just lost his girlfriend of several minutes to a box of expensive fungus. However, as the purple dragon takes another large one from the box and places it before his baby brother...all is forgiven.

The tiny blue drake breaks the mushroom in half and shoves a piece into his mouth, savoring it as much as Cynder.

"Morning everyone! You got any more of those, bro?"

Spyro's shoulders slump hearing the voice of his other fungi feasting brother, knowing he only has two mushrooms left. He looks down at Blake, whom tightens his grip upon the remaining half of his mushroom.

"Hey buddy..." Spyro begins to say, but Blake already knows the question he is about to be asked. He quickly does what every single little brother would do in a situation where they were asked to share by cramming the last piece of mushroom into his mouth.

"Nope!" he mumbles, then places his paw before his mouth, making sure none of what he is eating comes out.

"Thanks for nothing!" Spyro remarks sarcastically, grasping the smallest mushroom from the box for himself, then tossing the last one to Cyrus.

His younger brother devours the glorious tasting treat while walking over to the group of three. The dark blue Ice dragon then sits down beside the one he saw take his father's life, giving a long glare at the blade that shimmers with Cynder's slight tail movements in the ever building sunlight.

"Thank you for the snack Spyro..." he says, glancing up at his big brother before turning his attention to the sunrise. "...with that, and this glorious view, I can truly say I've had allof my senses stimulated today."

He places a paw upon the head of his little brother, annoying him as he gives a strong rub.

"I could _feel_ the love out here, while I _listened_ to Casanova try stealing another dragoness from his big brother." Cyrus remarks, then looks upon Cynder with an angered eye, knowing she was instigating the whole time. However, as he gives a slight sniff, the blue dragon physically hints to the reason why he is not very happy at this moment.

"But it's the _smell_ of vanilla, not unlike the scented oil I gave my mom for her birthday..." he squeezes his brother's head a bit harder, making him yelp slightly, especially when Cynder becomes nervous. "...it just makes me wanna throw something, that cannot fly, off this balcony."

"Mom said I could give it to her!"

Blake's voice, again muffled by one of his brothers' paws, is heard loud and clear by everyone, including the matriarch of the family, whom makes her presence known with a hard tap of her talons on the marble threshold to the balcony.

"Blake Junior! " Skylar declares angrily, making her baby cower as she steps out into the ever increasing sunlight. Her blue eyes cut through her youngest child freezing him in place, allowing her to simply walk up to Cynder and collect her little liar up in a stronger pair of paws.

"I gave that to you, to give to Spyro...so _he_ could give it to her."

Spyro's eyes open wide then turn to the young blue dragon in his mom's paws.

"Why you little brat!" He huffs, giving him a look of complete disgust, before striding over to his other brother and sitting down. "I agree with Cyrus, Mom...toss him over the side!"

"MOMMY!" Blake cries with great fear as Skylar flicks him in her paws towards the edge. However, as her grip intensifies, making sure he goes nowhere, the young dragon remembers mom would never. He giggles as she whips him around several times, all the while held securely in her loving paws, knowing regardless of what he does, mommy will never ever hurt her baby.

Now completely confident in his mother's grasp, the whelpling opens his small wings to catch the air like he was taught. A squeal of joy comes from deep within the youngster's soul as mom stands up high on her hind legs, holding him head and shoulders above the group, giving him a ride he hasn't had in long time.

Everyone laughs as Skylar finally places him back down on his paws, which immediately dig into the hard wooden floor of the balcony, trying to keep his balance after a discombobulating ride.

"Are you okay Blake?" Cyrus asks rhetorically, as the smile on his brother's face is enough to tell him how he feels. Although his inability to remain standing tells a different story. The young dragon, struggling to stay up, decides to sit down. He uses one of his forepaws to hold his mouth shut, as the contents of his stomach are still flying around.

Spyro actually enjoys watching the little drake struggle to keep his morning snack down, especially after how he's kept him from watching the sunrise with Cynder for the last week. However, as Cyrus opens his mouth, Spyro's anger quickly focuses from one brother to the other.

"Don't lose that truffle Spyro gave you..."

Spyro's tail is across the back of Cyrus' head, causing the younger dragon to give his big brother a look.

"Oww! Why'd you do that!?" he grumbles angrily, rubbing the pain from his head. However, as Spyro shows off the last truffle in his paw, and then hands it over to his mother whom immediately began looking around for hers, the middle brother understands his older sibling's anger.

Spyro kisses his birth mother on the cheek, catching a subtle hint of truffle over the scent of mint that she used to clean her morning breath.

"Morning, Mom!"

"Mornin'!" she mumbles with her mouth full, giving her big purple son an embrace, and for much more than a simple mushroom.

"Did you sleep well?" he continues, knowing she has had issues getting rest this last week, and for the oddest reason. Skylar is still unsure of what to do, or how to react to a life that is no longer filled with worry or stress. Her children are safe, their bellies are full, and the sun actually brings warmth when it rises.

Spyro gets his answer first by the strength of her grasp, as the well rested dragoness squeezes the air from her firstborn's lungs. Skylar looks around at her family, including the one she never thought would be a part of it, and answers her son with a resounding yes.

"I haven't felt this good in years, baby." she says while placing a very strong kiss upon his cheek. She leans over and places another motherly type smooch upon Cyrus' nose, then turns her dark blues towards Cynder, giving the slightly nervous dragon a smile.

Cynder lowers her head down and to the right, still afraid of the one who has ignored her apologies. However, hope is given as Skylar reaches out a paw and gently grasps her narrow jaw, lifting the depressed chin of this young dragon.

"I think I have finally put my anger to rest, Spyro." she says, gently lifting Cynder up off her stomach with a subtle pull of her jaw. She takes the dark dragon into the strong embrace she has with her firstborn, and quietly apologizes herself, for doubting the words her own blood has professed over and over.

"I'm sorry if I made you feel more pain, Cynder." she says somberly, softly pecking the dark dragoness on her cheek like she just did to all three of her children, showing them her love.

"You've suffered so much already, and I have only been making it worse by trying to tare my son away from you."

Skylar releases her embrace, leaving both Cynder and Spyro together before her.

"This is where fate has led you both. Who am I to upset that?" she says, recalling the dream she had last night, and the dragon that came into her life because of his own terrible fate.

Skylar sits back on her hind quarters and uses her other front paw to grasp Spyro by the jaw. She looks back and forth at the two young lovebirds held in her open palms, seeing the same thing in both of their eyes she once saw in her own.

"I would never have met your father if he didn't lose his home during the raid on Titan's Point." she says to Spyro, then looks at Cynder and gives her the most grateful look she has shown the black dragoness. "And I never would have gotten a chance to meet my baby if it wasn't for you."

Skylar then turns to her other sons, whom are sitting side by side, watching their mother with pride as she lets go of the hate they know is unwarranted.

"In fact, I get to hold all of my children because of the bravery you showed."

"I'm sorry..." Cynder begins to say, but Skylar's open paw closes upon the narrow muzzle in her right palm.

"You never need be sorry for that again, Cynder..." Skylar cuts in, returning her blue eyes to a stunned pair of emerald greens. "...I know you didn't do what I have accused you of, and I hope you can forgive me for being so hard on you this last week."

The black dragon removes her jaw from Skylar's grasp, and buries her face into her dark blue chest. She says nothing, allowing this tight embrace to speak for her.

"Cyrus! Can you take your brother to the town center market and get some more of those truffles" Skylar asks politely, and her formerly oldest son simply nods his head up and down.

"Of course, Mom. I'll also pick up a carton of eggs." He replies, scooping his brother in his paws and opening his wings. He can tell his mother wants him to leave her alone with the pair, and quickly leaps off the balcony. "We'll be back in few minutes and then I'll make breakfast for everyone."

"Damn! He can cook too!" Spyro remarks with a stunned tone in his voice, watching his new brother flying away. He is impressed with the stature and poise of this that's dragon four years younger than him, but now hearing he can also cook.

"I'll be a good brother, and get him a few things from the garden." Spyro continues, opening his wings up wide. He also knows his mom wants to be alone with Cynder, however, he is startled when Skylar stops him cold.

"No! Spyro, stay here please...I wanna speak to you." she says, opening her arms to release Cynder from her grasp. She looks down into the tear filled green eyes of a grateful dragoness.

"Can you give me a minute with my boy?"

Cynder just nods her head and backs away. A quick kiss is given to her purple hero before she leaves over the ledge of the balcony, gliding down into the garden for the veggies Spyro was gonna get.

Mother and son are left alone, and again, an awkward silence fills the air, but only for a moment.

"I lied when I said that I couldn't see her heart, Spyro, because she wears it outside for all to see."

Skylar reaches out her paw, and the purple dragon is quick to take it.

"I've told you for the last week that I could never support a relationship between my son and the dragon that killed my husband...but as you said, that dragon is dead." she begins, and Spyro already becomes excited as he can feel a stone object placed in his palm. A round object that is no longer on the middle talon of her left paw.

"I want you to give this to her."

Spyro looks at his paw, when his mother finally releases it, and begins to tear up seeing the ring of polished stone she spoke so highly of when he asked about it.

"This is your wedding band, Mom." Spyro remarks, staring at the perfect circle of granite that his biological father must have spent weeks crafting from a single stone.

"I can't..."

Skylar's bare paw is up to her son's mouth, and the tears begin to flow heavily.

"I want you to know this is what I really want..." she begins to say, but Spyro actually powers from her grasp, freeing himself to say what he must.

"I won't take his memory from you, Mom..." he says, grasping her left paw and replacing the band that has worn a ring around her finger. "...it is a symbol of the love you still feel for him, and I cannot take that from you."

"No Spyro...I want you to have it." she declares, but again, Spyro denies her by grasping his mother's paws tightly in his own, keeping her from removing the ring that he knows should remain where it has for the last twenty years.

"You don't need to prove your love, Mom." he says and Skylar stops struggling, hearing these words spoken without . "I know you love me, and I know you will be behind me when I finally get the courage to ask her."

Spyro looks around cautiously, then trots over to a small potted plant on the balcony. He yanks the large ficus-like tree from the clay pot and digs his empty paw into the soil below it. After pulling a small pouch from just below the surface, Spyro place the tree back exactly as it was.

With a child-like exuberance, the purple dragon strides over to his mother and hands her the dirt covered sack.

Skylar's eyes open wide as she uncovers the treasure Spyro must have been working on for at least a month.

"Oh my heavens Spyro...that is beautiful!" She remarks, admiring the ring carved from a piece of ancestral crystal. She cinches the dirty satchel up and hands it back to her son to hide.

The purple dragon returns to the tree, placing the item he is most proud of in its place, then returns to the one who gave him life.

"Are you sure you are okay with this mom, because..."

Skylar's paw is once again across her son's mouth, keeping him from repeating a question she is more than sure about.

"I may not be able to give you my ring, Spyro..." she say, removing her paw from his face and giving her firstborn a gentle kiss up the tip of his nose.

"...but I can give you my blessing."

* * *

 **A very happy chapter for the Holiday season, I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **Merry Christmahannikwanzika**


	12. Life's Lessons

**Happy New Year Everyone**

 **Well I could have ended this story last chapter with rainbows and unicorns, but that is not my style. So, here comes the drama, I hope you like it.**

 **I thank Robert Madden, MCZ, HolyCross9, DragonMaster, Dragon Uprising, and the many others that have inspired me through 2015 with their kind words and critiques. I hope 2016 will be even more inspiring.**

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Chapter 11 – Life's Lessons

From above the rooftops of Warfang, two brothers watch as the city comes to life with the rising sun. They had thought their early morning flight for supplies would leave them alone on the empty streets, but that is far from reality.

Hundreds upon thousands of Manweresmall, Wolf, Cheetah, Dragon, and even Grublin fill the large market square, waiting for the new day to sell their goods. The cobblestone roads of Avalar's largest city all lead to this central point, as Warfang, once built in three tiers devoted to class, is now broken into four quadrants.

Neither class, nor race, determine where anyone lives in the large city, as Warfang is laid out to represent the four natural elements; Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth.

Everyone lives together in harmony with the exception of the Grublins, whom still dwell on the outskirts of the Main Continent, over twenty miles from the city. However, as their race offered peaceful trade in lieu of battle, the powers that be decided to allow them access to the new city, especially since they came bearing a whole cart load of truffles.

"Wow... Cy! Can you believe how many people are already awake?" The younger of two remarks while enjoying the view, dangling high in the air from his brother's arms.

Both drakes watch in amazement as the near chaotic scramble of trade carts, which had once filled the squared shaped center of the city, file into an efficient alignment along the sides and middle of the plaza.

Like clockwork, five different races interact in perfect harmony, making their trades accessible in a civil and peaceful manor.

"I can't believe how they do this everyday without crashing into each other..." Cyrus answers, as he has been the one to shop in the town square for the last week. He smiles seeing two familiar female drakes maneuver a heavy cart into the intricate ballet, sliding their movable store into the same position they parked yesterday.

"...and it amazing how they just seem to get faster."

Blake also notices the two young dragonesses his brother is watching and smiles as well. He actually knows them, as they live next door to Spyro's home and have visited the family on several occasions over the past week.

"Their sisters...they work together as well as we do Cy." The younger brother remarks, watching the two fire breathing teens set up their stand for the day's trade.

"I hope you don't mean like the way we're working together right now?"

Cyrus' voice is very sarcastic, drawing a hard stare from his little brother.

"Because I'm the one flying..." he continues, looping around the market square so his brother can get a good look.. "...and your the one dangling your feet."

"Sorry, bro. I keep forgetting." Blake replies, tucking his arms and legs against his body for aerodynamics, as his brother has told him to do on several occasions. However, as Cyrus grunts his disapproval and continues his loop around the town square, little brother decides to instigate.

"You know... Mom has no difficulty flying while carrying someone as small as myself." He says with even more sarcasm then his brother and quickly he can feel Cyrus tighten his grip. He knows it will take one more thing to set him off, and as usual, the young dragon can provoke his sibling the best.

"I thought you were stronger than that!"

Cyrus banks a hard turn to the right, startling his baby brother for only a second before he begins to laugh. The two drakes then barrel roll, causing Blake to laugh even louder. With his brother securely holding him, the tiny whelp opens his light blue wings, again taking in the air as he was taught.

He mimics his brother's flapping, just like he does when mom flies him around, believing he is helping to build up speed.

Feeling the actual resistance his brother is giving, Cyrus quickly levels off his flight. A wide smile then fills his face as Blake's efforts start pushing their momentum up with his constant and correct flapping.

So, without warning, he lets his little brother go.

"By the ancestors!" Blake cries out, as he lunges straight up without the weight of Cyrus on his back. However, he quickly loses that bump in altitude as he starts flapping his arms and legs, and not his wings.

"Idiot!" Cyrus barks in Blake's ear, as he grasps his falling brother. "You had it and you stopped, Stupid!"

Cyrus cinches his paws around the torso of his much younger sibling, grumbling angrily to himself as he climbs nearly a thousand feet.

"Don't you dare!" Blake cries in a panic, feeling his brother's paws loosen around his body and quickly grasping onto him for all he's worth. He's never been this high without his mother and is suddenly no longer feeling protected by his big brother.

Blake has looked up to this dragon his entire life, as he never had a real father. However, at this moment in life, big brother is looking really small in his eyes.

"I'll tell Mom!"

Cyrus yanks Blake's right paw from his shoulder, then pulls him completely off and away from his body. The younger dragon flails desperately to grab his older sibling, even going so far as to hook his tail around Cyrus' arm, but coming up with nothing.

A high pitched yelp of fear exits the lungs of the terrified whelp, and Cyrus quickly clamps his empty paw around his little brother's mouth.

"I'm not gonna let you hit the ground this time, you big baby!" he barks in Blake's face, stopping his crying after only a single tear falls from his horrified face.

"Do you really think I'd try to _kill..._ my best friend."

Blake stops fidgeting immediately and gives his big brother a smile.

"You really think of me as your _best_ friend?" he says with such surprise that Cyrus is almost moved to tears himself. However, big brother quickly collects himself, knowing what he is going to do, and shows Blake a very cheeky grin.

"Of course you are." he says, then releases his paw.

"Ahhhhh! You Jerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrk!" Blake cries and Cyrus smiles wider.

The twelve year old, recalling the exact way his father first taught him how to fly, pin-drops from the sky, chasing his brother down at break neck speeds. He latches both paws tightly around Blake's chest, making sure he has full grasp of his brother, like his father did to him.

Cyrus opens his wings, making his brother a bit happier as he can feel the beginning resistance to gravity. However, as the larger blue dragon thrusts them back, doubling his speed, Blake screams with more fear.

"What are you doing?!"

"Shut up!" Cyrus replies, suddenly turning his brother to face him and leveling off. Keeping his incredible momentum, the dark blue dragon rolls one hundred eight degrees on his back, flying upside down with his brother held against his belly.

"Now open your wings!" he barks and Blake is quick to respond.

His tiny wings take in the fast moving wind and Cyrus smiles as little brother instinctively begins to curl them to collect the wind's energy, like his wings did when Blake Sr. taught him. Big brother then loosens his grasp, causing little brother to panic, however, Cyrus quickly fixes this issue the same way his father did when he panicked nine years earlier.

His tail snaps up and cracks the back of Blake's head.

"CALM DOWN!" he barks, startling the younger dragon straight. "I WILL NOT LET YOU DROP!"

Still hundreds of feet above the rooftops, and moving insanely fast, Blake is terrified to fall. However, seeing and hearing the Patriarchal side of his brother once again, the younger brother does as told.

Calmed, as much as he can be, Blake looks at his brother and nods.

Cyrus smiles, glances in the direction he is flying to make sure no obstructions are in their path, then returns his sights to his baby brother.

"We got this, Buddy..." he says with a confident wink of his left eye. "...cause we work together better than anyone!"

Blake gives an agreeing gaze to his big brother then looks forward and focuses.

"Tuck in your arms and legs..." Cyrus orders, and quickly his little brother heeds his words.

"...open them little wings up wide..." he continues, and again Blake does as told.

The older blue dragon can feel the lift his brother is creating, and once again loosens his grasp.

"...and gently flap them down."

Blake comes free from his brother's paws, lifting a few feet up above him. Cyrus quickly rolls to the left and levels off beside his brother, whom jostles up and down with little control of his altitude.

"I'M FLYING!" the youngster squeals out in shock, as he feels gravity's hold on him disappear with every gentle flap of his wings. He turns his head to look at his brother, showing him the joy in which he has never felt before, however, this changes his aerodynamics, and Blake turns hard into Cyrus' side.

Both brother's crumble together and once again fall from the sky.

"You imbecile! I didn't teach you how to turn your body while flying yet!" Cyrus grunts, after bringing their fall to a controlled descent just a few feet from the rooftops of Warfang's Air District.

"I'm glad I went up that high."

"Me too!" Blake adds as his dangling feet tick off one of the many weather vanes in this section of the city.

Cyrus snaps his wings down once, pulling up a dozen feet, allowing the pair to fly free of the obstructions below. He banks hard to the right, turning one hundred eighty degrees, heading back to the town square.

"Next time, we should try this where there are no buildings!" the younger dragon remarks with a sarcastic tone, as his big brother funnels down in between two large structures and into the plaza itself. The pair of blue drakes head directly for the cart their next door neighbors continue setting up.

Cyrus chuckles, already knowing where his brother is trying to lead him, and gives the young whelpling some hope with a different answer than he gave yesterday.

"I will ask Mom if we can go with Nina and Flash to the valley today." he says, and Blake immediately becomes excited within his brother's paws, so much so, that Cyrus almost drops him as he pulls up to land.

"BUT ONLY IF YOU STOP ACTING LIKE A BABY!"

"But he _is_ a baby!" a sweet sounding voice remarks just as Cyrus places his hind paws down on the cobblestone road.

The young adolescent dragon's attention is quickly taken by the red and pink chested fire dragoness, whom strolls out from behind the large cart she and her sister have just finished setting up for the day. Her soft paw gently rubs the tiny muzzle of his little brother before reaching up to cup Cyrus' chin.

"Why would you want Blake to stop acting the way he should?"

The little dragon practically stands up in his brother's paws showing off the anger he is feeling now, especially as the teenaged dragoness begins speaking with a childish tone.

"I mean...he's such a sweet wittle baby."

"Thanks, bro! You know, I really wish you would stop calling me that in front of your... _girlfriend!_ " Blake remarks with a bit more anger, knowing his brother is slightly taken by their new neighbor's oldest daughter, Shannon, and letting the cat out of the bag.

"She's not my girlfriend!" He barks, then with great shock and fear looks up at the young dragoness, whom suddenly becomes upset at what she hears. He quickly smiles showing his embarrassment which makes her frown disappear, allowing both to feel more comfortable it the company of each other.

"Well...not yet that is." Cyrus remarks with a more easy going voice, plucking a small bundle of wild flowers from the cart parked beside hers, then handing them to the pretty pink and red dragoness.

His actions are smooth and Blake rolls his eyes, especially as Shannon leans her head slightly forward. She pecks him on the cheek and blushes, as she too is smitten with the young brother of the purple dragon she cannot have.

"Thank you Cyrus...they're beautiful," Shannon says while sniffing the lavender blooms. She then looks over at the eyes that practically match their color. "...just make sure you pay for them."

Cyrus smiles, knowing the cart belongs to the dragonfly mother of his other brother.

"Don't worry..." he says, again using his charming voice, looking up at the green and blue dragonflies whom continue setting up their rolling florist shop. "...I know the owners."

Shannon's laughter rings in the dark blue dragon's heart until Blake busts in, breaking the two teenagers up. "Well... you're lucky Shale didn't hear that!" he grunts, however, before he can smile about separating his brother from his new girlfriend.

"Lucky _I_ didn't hear _what_!?" A voice replies from behind the large trade cart filled with fresh fruits and vegetables. "That you're a sweet _wittle_ baby!"

Blake's eyes suddenly focus on Shannon's younger sister, whom shows a wide smile to the lighter blue whelp still held in Cyrus' dark blue paws

"I mean look at how adorable you are..." she continues, getting up on her hind paws to be eye level with Blake, whom is still held by his brother. "...you practically fit in your big brother's palms."

Blake immediately leaps out of Cyrus' grasp, dropping to the ground and quickly getting face to face with the orange and black chested dragon that he has become quite annoyed with over the past week.

"I am not a baby anymore, Shale," he barks in her face, getting aggravated with the whelpling dragoness who constantly reminds him that she is one year his senior.

"I can fly now!"

"I noticed that!" she retorts sarcastically, and before Blake can remark about how proud he is for flying a few feet on his own, the young orange dragoness quickly destroys that pride, critiquing his performance aloud. "And if you call veering into your brother after three seconds, then nose-diving a hundred feet before smashing into several weather vanes a good flight...then yeah! I guess you can fly now."

Blake just sits their, too angry to speak, his face now as red as Shale's sister. The young dragoness unfurls her pure black wings, flapping them several times to lift off the ground, then hovers in place ten feet above the young boy.

Shale grasps a large sign from the top of their cart, adding more weight to her frame, causing her to flap her wings harder. She then stops, holding them perfectly flat, allowing her to glide down to the exact spot she had planned.

"That is how you fly!" she grunts with a bit of strain in her voice, but not as much as she really feels, as that small flight with extra weight took a lot out of the youngster. Even Shannon is impressed at her sister's ability to carry that heavy sign, truly understanding now, how badly her baby sister is infatuated with the cute blue dragon that looks just like their favorite hero

"Stop trying to impress your boyfriend!"

Shale immediately spins around giving her big sister an aggravated look.

"He's NOT my boyfriend!"

Shannon grins as her little sister shows the same embarrassment Cyrus did a moment ago, knowing how much Shale will not stop talking about him when they are in their room at night. However, as Blake responds with a negative answer, both sisters are crushed.

"I have a girlfriend!" he says, and without trying to cover her feelings, Shale immediately asks.

"Who?"

Shannon can hear the disturbingly somber tone in her little sister's voice, as she was hoping her own tactic of being a jerk would attract the young drake. In fact, Shannon had taught her younger sister to do this, as it worked several times for her in the past, including now.

However, as Blake answers "Cynder." both sisters begin laughing.

"Oh good, Shale! He's only kidding." Shannon blurts out and Blake gets mad.

"She _is_ my girlfriend..." he returns with a strong tone of voice, but then pauses as his brother Cyrus grunts angrily. Blake looks back at this dragon who can and will punish him for lying and quickly fixes the story to show some truth.

"Well she sleeps with _me_ every morning, doesn't that mean something!?" he retorts and Cyrus shakes his head.

"No. Cynder was doing what her _real_ boyfriend asked!" he replies, grasping Blake by the scruff of his neck and picking him up to his eye level. "He suggested that she keep an eye on his _pain-in-the-butt_ little brother while he slept outside, so his Mom and his other brother could finally get some rest."

Blake, helplessly dangling from his brother's paw, can do nothing but stare at Cyrus with his little blue eyes.

"Okay, so I'm not Cynder's boyfriend, but I'm not _her_ boyfriend either." he says adamantly, pointing a talon at the cute orange dragoness, whom lowers her head and tail to the ground with a bit of depression.

"Then you're an idiot!" Cyrus remarks, unceremoniously dropping his brother to the ground, then smiling at Shannon's little sister. "Cause I think she is quite a catch..." he smartly looks up at her big sister with this same infectious smile to finish his thought. "...especially when you see what the future has in store for you."

"There will be no future for that little brat if he keeps mentioning _her_ name in public!"

All four dragons turn around to look upon the one who spoke and quickly the three oldest understand this request and obey. The two girls know of this green Earth dragon's anger, as it was told to them by their parents, and to remain quiet about their friendship with the murderer of his family.

They in turn have given this information to Cyrus, whom was also informed by his brother Spyro to remain away from this particular stubborn Earth dragon. However, unknown to Blake, and like most dragons his age will do, the youngster opens his tiny mouth at the wrong time.

"What name can't I say!" he gripes arrogantly, and before Cyrus can stop his little brother, the niave blue drake finishes his sarcastic taunt.

"Cynder!"

The large dragon screams with a primal rage, recalling the pain of a knife that was driven into his chest by the Terror of the Skies herself. However, this pain is not what drives his anger, as he was not the intended target of Cynder's attack.

"ARRRRRRRRRR!" The large Earth dragon grumbles, remembering the moment his big brother covered him from an attack, then watched as his eyes closed for the last time.

"Brazin! NO!" Shannon calls out, as this full sized drake she knows to be as fierce as any dragon on Avalar goes to strike the helpless three year old whelp.

"Don't you dare hit him, he don't know any better!"

"Yeah! Don't hurt him!" Shale barks as well, however, Cyrus is already in front of this dragon twice his size.

"That's my little brother you're threatening..." he remarks, a twinge of fear in his voice, knowing he has no chance in defending himself against a dragon this size, but yet he doesn't back down. "...if you want him, you'll have to go through me!"

"But he needs to learn a lesson." The larger dragon grumbles, looking down at Blake and showing his fangs.

"Maybe so...But you are not going to be the one to teach him that lesson..." Cyrus replies, grasping Brazin's round muzzle and pulling his eyes back to his own. "...I will."

The large green drake slaps Cyrus' paw from his face, then grabs him around the neck, digging his talons into the softer scales of Cyrus' throat.

"DON'T YOU TALK TO ME LIKE I'M SOME CHILD!" Brazin barks in the dark blue dragon's face, then raises a clenched fist to strike. However, before he can release more rage.

"THAT'S ENOUGH BRAZIN!" A strong voice echoes and the entire market square comes to grinding halt.

"Your Majesty...I wasn't going to hurt him...I swear!" Brazin remarks, releasing Cyrus' neck, then bowing to the green dragon that just landed behind him. "I was just talking to him, Master Terrador."

Terrador looks around the large drake and shakes his head, seeing two small trickles of blood coming from the neck of Spyro's brother.

"Well, it looks like a very one sided conversation, Brazin." he returns sarcastically, helping the dark blue drake back to his feet.

"Are you alright, young dragon?"

Cyrus clears his throat of the fear and pain, keeping his eyes focused strong on his opponent, like he was taught.

"I'm fine, Master Terrador..." he replies, politely pulling his arm from the large Earth dragon's grasp to show he can stand on his own power. His eyes remain focused on the one who attacked him as he continues his thought. "...it was just a misunderstanding...there is no need for you or the Guardians to get involved in this."

Both Earth movers show a slight smile, which is saying a lot for this normally stubborn breed of dragon.

"Are you sure, Cyrus?"

"Positive. Brazin did nothing I wouldn't have done, Your Majesty." he replies quickly, guaranteeing the new leader of Warfang that he is sure of this decision. "It's not his fault my little brother doesn't know when to shut his mouth...so I think I'm just gonna break his jaw."

Cyrus finally breaks eye contact, as Brazin no longer shows anger within his dark black pupils, and he looks back to show his little brother this anger, but Blake is nowhere to be found.

"Now where the hell did he go!?"

Shannon also becomes annoyed noticing her sister is gone too.

"I don't know..." the pink and red dragoness grunts, knowing her little sister must have ran off with him. She looks at the trade cart that they are supposed to be working together, and gets even more annoyed that she'll be setting up shop alone. "...but if they are together when I find them I'm gonna help you break his jaw."

However, as a frantic cry soon echos from behind the carts, everyone's attitude changes.

"SHANNON!"

This voice is filled with panic and fear, drawing nearly a dozen dragons behind the large trade cart, including Terrador whom had yet to move on.

"What is it?!" the pink dragoness demands upon seeing her Manweresmall neighbor from the market, wondering what she could have seen to make her bark out her name with such emotions. However, as her eyes notice the small dragonfly charm Shale wears on her right horn, broken in pieces on the cobblestone road, Shannon quickly knows something is wrong.

"A cheetah, I've never met before today, cloaked in a black robe filled with a strong scent of mildew and excrement, just grabbed Shale and her little blue friend. He shoved them both in a large canvas bag then took off running." she continues in this panicked voice, pointing a shaking hand towards the Earth Section of Warfang. Her other tiny hand extends out towards Cyrus, whom is now as panicked as Shannon and herself.

"He gave me this note to give to Spyro..." the Manweresmall female continues while taking a pronounced sniff. The blind mole-like creature then hands the small piece of paper to the one she can smell tainted in the scent of whom the note is intended.

"...and said if he wants his little brother back...then he must deliver Cynder to him."

* * *

 **OH CRAP!**

 **This is where they say the plot thickens. Let me know with your reviews if you like this little twist. And if not, let me know what you don't like. However, I'm sure I can sway you in the coming chapters.**

 **Again, I wish all out their a happy and healthy 2016**


	13. Ultimatum

**Is it time for battle yet...maybe**

 **Thank you to Robert M., MCZ, HolyCross9, Dragon-uprising, and guests for your reviews. Keep 'em coming.**

* * *

Chapter 12 – Ultimatum

The weight of the world, which has resided on Spyro's shoulders for the past week, now rises as fast as the sun over Warfang Gardens. His mother, whom had practically avoided him like 'the plague' this last week, now stands beside her boy with a massive blue wing draped around him.

Only anger would she show the purple dragon who protected Cynder, the one that killed her beloved, but today it was different. She was accepting, forgiving, loving...mothering.

 _She gave her blessing_ he says to himself, still dumbfounded by what has changed his mother's attitude so abruptly. That is until the sounds of joy and laughter come up from the garden below.

Mother and child both stare down from the balcony at the black dragoness, whom now rolls around in a patch of soft green grass with several young dragonflies. She continues laughing and playing with these familiar insects, whose job it is to tend the family gardens while their mother and father work in the Market Square.

Cynder's playfulness and joy is clearly heard two stories up and across the street, as Spyro's other siblings keep the Shadow dragoness laughing with their continued hi-jinx.

"Your... ah... _brothers..._ " Skylar pauses, makes an odd expression still unsure how to address her son's other family, but then continues on with her thought. "...are showing you the reason I changed my mind."

Spyro smiles wide, as this is the side of Cynder he knows and loves. The dark dragon, who is finally getting a chance to show off her brightness, enjoying a childhood she never got in the baron Burned Lands. He is about to say why he has taken so much abuse to defend her, when his mother actually says it herself.

" _She_ was the real victim of the Dark Master's war."

The purple dragon says nothing in return, simply taking his mother's arm in an embrace, holding it tightly like a child being lead through a crowd of strangers. For the first time in his life, he feels absolutely safe and secure, held firmly within the grasp of his mother.

Sure Nina supported and care and comforted her adopted child, but this actual feeling of security, smothered inside his mother's grasp, is something the purple dragon has longed for his entire life. In fact, the only other time he felt this comforted was when Ignitus held him, and only when he was much younger.

They both sit quietly, content within the company of one another, enjoying the playful actions of three small dragonflies and one very happy, vanilla-scented, black dragoness.

"I'm sorry Mom..." Spyro suddenly remarks, squeezing her arm tighter as a single thought now crosses his mind. "...I just wish I could have done things a little differently."

"What are you talking about?" she replies, opening her wing to expose her son, then turning Spyro around to look him eye to eye.

"I should have known I was not a normal dragonfly..." he says, lowering his head down with depression, however, Mom is quick with her paw to hold it up. "...just maybe I could have stopped Cynder before..."

Several tears fall from Spyro's face and Skylar smothers him into her chest.

"No baby, you are who you are because of the time you spent with your family." she replies, looking down at Cynder and seeing her son in that position, living a childhood that he never would have had had she rescued him from the rookery.

Skylar gently pulls Spyro's head from her chest, making sure she makes eye contact with her son.

"They made you the _hero_ you are today..." she says, then kisses her son upon the nose and shows him a very wide smile. "...all I did was give you life."

Spyro smirks, however, he is unable to get a single word out before Mom makes her _real_ point, and this time without the humor or the sarcasm.

"You would not have made a difference if you were there, baby." Skylar remarks, now knowing her son's history as much as everyone on Avalar, and the time he spent learning how to do what he can from the great Chronicler. Mother strengthens her grasp upon her child's shoulder, making sure he understands.

"You would have died to defend your father that night and the world would have been lost."

Spyro does not dispute her, knowing he would have fought anything that attacked his family, and laid down his life to protect them. It is what brought out the fire inside of the large purple dragonfly for the first time, when Sparx was imprisoned by several unknown creatures.

"Mom?" his voice is suddenly unsure and immediately Skylar picks up on her son's timidness, especially as he asks his next question. "Can I ask you something that might be hard for you to talk about?"

Skylar, already knowing what he wants seeing, the uneasy look in his eyes, just nods her head up and down.

Spyro pauses again, looks down and takes a deep breath, then returns his purple eyes to the one that bore him.

"What was my father like?"

Skylar's grasp upon her son tightens, making Spyro believe he should have left this subject alone for a little while longer.

It is a reaction she could not stop, as her emotions of having to explain him begin to take their effects again. She has already had the burden of describing to one of her children who their father _was._ It pains the single mother that her youngest, and now her oldest, never met the dragon that made her feel complete.

However, as his mother's heart begins to sing about the love still felt within, the purple dragon realizes he has asked the right question.

"He was a lot like you Spyro," She starts, hugging her oldest son with the strength she would use on her husband. He in turn embraces his mother with a more tender touch. ", solid as a rock from nose to tail and yet soft and gentle when he held you."

Skylar backs away, leaving her oldest boy standing before her as she continues comparing her love to the purple dragon that reminds her more of him everyday.

"He was as humble as they come and generous to a fault..." The smitten dragoness continues, looking up to the sky for inspiration, then giving a very pronounced wink. "...but you better not cross him, or he would make you pay."

The blue dragon raises a paw to Spyro's jaw, lifting it ever so slightly.

"You both have this big round beautiful nose with rock strong chins..." Skylar suddenly brushes a talon across a certain spot on Spyro's neck, making him flinch very heavily. "...yet are vulnerable to the right touch."

"Hey!" he chuckles while pulling away, rubbing the spot under his jaw that Cynder also likes to poke. "Don't do that! That really tickles."

Mom smiles again, seeing the one she misses so much in the purple dragon before her. Skylar then looks down at the black dragoness as she chases three of Spyro's tiny insect brother into a grove of trees.

"But mostly... He knew how to defend the ones he loved..." She says, then suddenly starts crying, feeling the loss of the one who took her heart even more. "...because it was all he cared about, Spyro."

The purple dragon takes his mother in a very tight embrace.

"I'm sorry Mom. I didn't mean to upset you." he says, truly angry for bringing the subject up, but Skylar is quick to stop him from beating himself up.

"NO..." she says with a firm tone. "...I need to speak of him from time to time, Spyro, if only to remind myself."

However, it is this exact moment that Skylar's other reminders are heard yelling from high in the sky over the center of town. Both mother and brother look up at the pair of blue dragons whom seem to be fighting in mid-air.

"What the heck is he doing?" Spyro remarks, getting ready to leap from the balcony, as his sharp eyes focus on Cyrus, whom continues prying his brother's paws from his body.

However, Skylar holds her oldest son put, seeing a familiar scene that played out nine years earlier. She smiles, hearing Spyro's nervousness, recalling exactly how she felt the day Blake Sr. dropped Cyrus from the sky.

"Looks like he's teaching his little brother how to fly..." She returns, grasping Spyro's shoulder tighter as Cyrus releases Blake. "...the hard way!"

"That's crazy, Mom! He's gonna hurt him" the purple dragon remarks, however, from the balcony next door comes an answer he was never expecting.

"That's how my father taught me, Spyro!"

Both Skylar and her oldest are stunned to see the large red and orange fire dragon that resides to the immediate left of the purple dragon's new home, his eyes also focused up on the pair that now fall from the air quickly.

"Are you serious, Oswald?" Spyro replies, his eyes locked upon the free-falling blue drakes as they increase speed towards the ground. However, as Cyrus opens his wings, then levels off with his back to the ground, Spyro becomes dumbfounded.

"Holy mackerel! He's flying upside-down!" the purple dragon remarks with astonishment, looking back at his mother in complete shock, as he is unable to perform this action. The purple dragon easily removes himself from her hold, allowing him to fly up over the rooftop and follow the flight of his brothers as they disappeared from view.

"That's remarkable!"

"Not really..." Oswald's deep voice replies, as he joins Spyro up on the roof of his home, watching the same lesson taught him by his father.

"...though his technique is flawed..." he continues, as Cyrus releases Blake, then circles around to his side. "...and hurried!"

Both dragons cringe as Blake suddenly turns into his brother, sending the pair towards the rooftops of the adjacent section of the city. Like the roller coaster the two brother are riding, Spyro's and Oswald's nerves fall and rise with the pair, however, from behind, only joy and pride is heard.

"That is exactly what Cyrus did to his father..." Skylar remarks with a nostalgic tone, landing on the facade of her new home beside the two drakes, watching her children work together better than most. Mom's pride is expressed in the next second, as she witnesses her one time oldest son take control of the situation and improve on the results that happened when he was taught by his father.

"...except Senior crashed into a tree."

They watch as Cyrus banks a hard turn with his brother in tow, lowering down into the center of the city before returning to their respective balconies.

"So, Spyro, Ms. Skylar... What has you up so early on this glorious morning?" The large red fire breather remarks, scorching a special stone on his balcony to heat it, then laying upon the rock to remain warm. He looks down at the patch of grass that Cynder has just returned to, now chasing half-a-dozen dragonflies from the forest.

All three watch as the black dragoness disappears into a mist of Shadows, reappearing before the small party of rushing insects.

"BOO!" She shouts, making all six dragonflies squeal in shock. They quickly turn around, giggling with excitement as they fly away in all directions. Cynder also squeals with joy, giving chase to the leader of the group and the one that started an impromptu game of chase.

"I'M GONNA GET YOU, DIAMOND!" she declares, following a white dragonfly back into the garden.

"IN YOUR DREAMS, SLOWPOKE!"

Spyro looks over at Oswald, showing a very genuine grin to the large fire breather.

"And miss all this excitement!" he replies, as he has enjoyed two different shows already. "If I knew all _this_ happens before the sun rises, I would actually wake up early every morning."

Oswald lowers a single brow, showing the purple dragon a very sarcastic look.

"Seriously Spyro!?" he retorts, knowing exactly when the purple dragon has stumbled out on to the terrace of his home for the last week. "I've yet to see you up before the sun reaches mid sky."

Spyro simply smiles then looks down as Cynder reemerges from the forest with Diamond in her right paw.

"Well I have plans today, Oswald..." he replies, holding his mother's paw as his nerves suddenly overwhelm him. He turns his head toward the flower pot that holds a valuable secret, one that the fire dragon has seen himself. "...that is if I can find the strength to ask her."

"My goodness Spyro, are you gonna finally make it official!" A female voice remarks from behind Oswald, and quickly a very lovely looking pink and red dragon emerges from the dwelling next door.

"I mean, seriously, it's about time you tied the knot with Cynder."

"By the ancestors, Sharon...we've only been together for like three months if you think about it." Spyro replies, rolling his eyes at the same topic she brings up every time they see each other. He looks down again, making sure Cynder didn't hear his loud mouthed neighbor, then gestures his paw in anger "And she don't know yet, so if you don't mind, could you not shout it from the rooftop."

Sharon grasps her husband's arm, then reaches up to kiss him on the cheek.

"Ozzy offered his paw after only a week..." She says and quickly a smart aleck remark is fired back from inside Spyro's home

"Cause he was going to war the next day, Sharon!" Sparx shouts upon exiting the home he frequents as much as his own, joining a conversation he has had no part of, and quickly taking it over.

"And now he's trying to figure a way to get that paw back from you."

Both Spyro and Skylar chuckle from the loud mouthed dragonfly's exclamation, as does Oswald, who knows Sparx is joking with his wife of fifteen years.

Sharon, on the other hand, scowls at Sparx, whom zips over to the group with a grand smile on his little face. However, as he approaches, she returns his cheeky grin, as he is one of her best friends in the whole world, and knows he is only being funny. But truly, it is cause she can see her retort now staring back at her

"When are you getting that mono brow trimmed, Sparx?" She quips, making the small dragonfly pause to feel his forehead. Again the other three chuckle, as Sparx's feelings are shot back with rage, especially after having his looks made fun of.

"That's not cool, Sharon...You know how fast these things grow in on a dragonfly!" he retorts, painfully plucking several large black hairs from the bridge of his nose. However, he stops after the third hair, staring at his friend and neighbor.

"Could be worse though." he says with a grin again, and Sharon quickly finishes his thought.

"Yeah...you could have you father's monobrow."

Everyone laughs, knowing how bushy the _single_ gray eyebrow is on the patriarch of Spyro's other family, yet no one could expect the next line, which comes from the purple dragon himself.

"Or Mom's!"

Everyone pauses, stunned stupid by Spyro's harsh joke about his mother's eyebrows. That is until everyone notices how hard they are trying to keep their laughter inside. The balcony shakes with the thunderous joy of such a terrible joke, knowing how inappropriately true it is.

Sparx looks over at his brother, barely able to keep his eyes open from laughing so hard.

"Mom's gonna kill you when she hears what you said." he remarks, and Spyro plucks his brother out of the sky.

"Then she better not hear it!"

Sparx, whom continues laughing, assures his brother with a simple nod. This in turn gets a reaction from Skylar, who swats her son across the backside with her tail.

"OWW!" Spyro yelps, looking back at his mother while rubbing the pain from his hind quarters.

"What was that for, Mom...I saw you laughing too!"

"Ummm..." she pauses, looking at everyone in turn for assistance in defending herself, however, Skylar knows she laughed, and for good reason. Nina's eyebrows are thin and very feminine, but still seem to connect after a day or two, no matter what she does.

"That was for your mother, who can't be here to defend herself."

Sparx laughs in his big brother's face, then looks over at Skylar and shows her a very genuine grin.

"Thanks Mom! He deserved that for making fun of Mom."

Skylar's eyes open wide, staring at the tiny dragonfly for a moment. She is about to ask why he called her Mom, but before she can open her mouth, a panicked voice shouts from down in the grassy area below.

"Let go of my brother, Cynder!" a tiny little blue dragonfly yells, getting directly in the face of the black dragoness ten thousand times her size.

Cynder shows and angry scowl to the tiny dragonfly, which scares her back a few feet. The dark dragoness then draws a circle with her talon and gently places Diamond in the center.

"He's mine..." she says with a very evil sounding tone, scaring the little girl further away. It also startles Skylar, wondering why the dark dragoness is suddenly acting like this. Cynder lowers down to pounce, making the young insect back away further, and putting Skylar on edge.

"...and now I'm gonna get you!"

"RUN SAPPHIRE!" her brother barks, hoping his youngest sister will understand her first game of tag, and run. However, overwhelmed by the moment, the tiny blue dragonfly starts crying.

Cynder quickly stops the evil act, switching back to the dragoness Spyro fell in love with. She swoops Sapphire into her paws, hugging the little dragonfly gently to he nose. Her green eyes softening to speak to the young girl.

"I'm sorry, Sweetie..." she says, and quickly the young dragonfly stops her balling, staring at the giant eyes that begin glistening with tears. "...I didn't mean to scare you... I just wanted you to run away so I could chase you."

The young girl's blue eyes suddenly change emotions again, showing embarrassment and not fear.

"Oh!" she says, then looks down at her big brother, whom shows his disappointment. "I'm sorry!"

Sapphire then takes off like a shot into the forest, immediately turning after reaching the first tree, then zig-zagging around like her brother taught her.

"She'll get it some day, Cynder." Diamond remarks, and the black dragon walks back over to him instead of giving chase.

"She's got it already, Diamond..." Cynder replies, losing sight of the little insect after only a few seconds. "...I don't see her anymore, and she is much faster than you."

"MOM! DAD!"

Both groups are startled by the panicked voice from down the street, especially the mother and father of this young pink and red dragoness, whom is now follow by a mob of others.

"SHANNON!" Cries a concerned mother, whom quickly notices her youngest daughter is absent from the advancing party. Sharon and Oswald are quickly off the balcony to be with their daughter, however, noticing Cynder on the grassy area outside her home, Shannon turns towards her.

The young dragoness slams into Cynder, driving her to the ground, just missing Diamond in the process. Her paw quickly striking the muzzle of a startled Shadow dragon, as her voice fills the area with her rage.

"THEY TOOK HER CAUSE OF YOU!"

"SHANNON!?" Oswald barks, stopping his daughter's paw before striking again. "What is going on!?"

Only able to cry, the red and pink chest dragoness simply hands the note she received to her father.

The large Fire dragon becomes enraged upon gazing at the note, getting angrier with every word he reads. He then turns to the purple dragon, whom has now placed himself between Cynder and a growing crowd of angry Avalarians, all armed and ready to fight.

"This note is not for me, Spyro..." he says, handing the small note to the purple dragons, showing him a look he has never seen from this stoic dragon. "...but now...it appears I must get involved."

Spyro looks down at the note, reading only the first sentence before becoming nauseous.

 _I have your little brother, and if you wish to see him again...alive, then bring Cynder's head to the Well of Souls._

Spyro looks up at Oswald, whom begins consoling his family, especially since he read the whole note.

"They took my daughter, Spyro..." he says, his voice broken from the thought of not being able to hold her. "...and I can't let that happen."

The purple hero looks back down to read the remaining part, written in a different hand.

 ** _And if you want to see the little girl as well...you will deliver her before morning._**

* * *

 **Oh no, all that fun comes to crashing halt.**

 **What will happen? Will Oswald attack Spyro? Will the entire group from the town square?**

 **Stay tuned.**


	14. Rally Together

**I'm buried in 30" of snow, thanks to this Nor'Easter on the east coast of the US, so that means I will have time to write.**

 **I thank you all for the continued support and reviews, over 4000 hits and I have yet to introduce the antagonist.**

 **Well here he comes**

 **Thank you MCZ, Dragon Uprising, Robert Madden, DragonMaster000, and HolyCross9 for your consistently positive reviews, they have help immensely.**

* * *

Chapter 13 Rally together

It wasn't the lovely aromas of a million flowers blooming in the Garden of Warfang, or the soft grassy area he had slept on for the past week. Nor was it the incredible view of the sunrise, which welcomed him every morning from the spot Spyro's parents' offered, that made Scythe say yes to staying in the city.

He had been a loner after the loss of his father, staying out of view of the population since the emergence of the Terror of the Sky, as he is literally the male replica of the evil dragon that destroyed so many lives. However, knowing he could keep a watchful eye on the only remaining member of his family, Scythe decided it was best for him to remain in Warfang.

The large dragon helps out with the big tasks now, moving tree branches and huge boulders for his room and board. And though the tasks seem menial for a dragon possessing his powers, Scythe has had no issues with the fringe benefits this deal brings.

"These sunflowers are incredibly good, Diamond..." he remarks to one of the many tiny new friends he has made while hiding out of sight. He tosses another large round yellow and black sunflower into his mouth, savoring the flavors that now combine in perfect harmony against his taste buds. "...I cannot believe how your aunt can produce such a wonderful tasting bloom every time."

"She talks nicely to them..." a young girl answers, and Scythe looks up at the tiny blue dragonfly that seems to have found a new home too. Like her cousin Sparx, this cute little blue dragonfly is glued to a dragon's right horn. "...and that makes them happier, so they grow bigger and that makes 'em taste better."

"You really think that helps, Sapphire?" he asks, his voice to her is, as always, soft and sweet. "Well then, let me try."

While remaining down upon his red stomach, Scythe turns to one of the remaining sunflowers he was told he could have today, getting very close to the large dark center of the massive bloom.

"Hello Mr Sunflower. You look absolutely delicious." he whispers, then munches the perfect bloom in one bite. The Shadow dragon savors another wonderful mouthful, then politely swallows it before talking to his new best friend.

"You were right, Sweetheart..." he says, raising a single eyebrow up and putting a very wide smile on his long narrow muzzle. "...that does work."

Sapphire stares at Scythe, shaking her head, but showing him a very happy grin as well.

"You are so silly sometimes!"

The large dragon makes a silly face to emphasize her point, then returns his eyes to her big brother.

"Your little sister has me figure out already, Diamond." he remarks, and the all white dragonfly laughs for a brief moment. Diamond then returns to his work, emptying a small bucket of water at the base of several flowers, before returning to a tiny pump for a refill.

"No... She's not entirely correct." he finally says, getting the young dragonfly and her big friend to stop their conversation and look at him. "Cause If she had you figured out, then my sister would know that you're silly _all the time_ , Scythe."

The large Shadow dragon says nothing, overly nodding his head up and down to the point his tongue pops out.

Sapphire laughs at her big dopey friend who does well to act the part, however, this tiny insect knows better. He is as mysterious as they come, though she can read him like a book. And he is as strong as her uncle Spyro, yet she knows he is as gentle as a baby Manweresmall to the ones he cares for.

The tiny blue dragonfly lowers down to the tip of Scythe's long nose, and she grasp it tightly in an embrace.

"You're not that silly, Scythe..." she says, gently kissing the very tip of his huge muzzle. "...I know you're not because you're my friend."

The reason means little to dispute the fact, but still means more to the large dragon than the world. He places a soft paw against her back, hugging the little insect to his nose, just like he has seen Spyro do to his mother and brother.

"Thank you, Sapphire." he says with great emotion, however, he is suddenly startled as Cynder barrels through the small grove of sunflowers, chasing three of Spyro's brother's into the area.

Cynder is also startled, seeing her big brother laying down only a few feet in front of the three blazing fast dragonfly siblings of her love.

Noticing her path will also take her into the large black dragon, whom seems too preoccupied to move, Cynder decides to take action instead. With practice from her older brother, the dark dragoness slips into the Shadow Realm at full speed. She halts her momentum within the cold region of nothingness, then reappears directly in front of her brother, laying down with her paws crossed.

Scythe, whom immediately removed Sapphire from his nose and closed his other paw around her for protection from an intense collision, is shocked when he feels only three small impacts against his right flank. He slowly opens one eye and is stunned to see his sister resting on her stomach before him.

"Hey Scythe! Lovely morning today, isn't it?" she says with a nonchalant attitude, as if performing that move was nothing spectacular, but the black dragon knows differently.

"My goodness Cynder!" he blurts, his excitement unable to cover the shock that still remains within his voice. He stands up on three paws, still holding Sapphire in his now open right palm, leering down at the dragoness whom has given him another reason to live. "I can't believe how fast you picked up on that technique."

Sycthe, recalling the time it took him to figure out what his father was teaching, shows a bit of a foul expression.

"It took me two years to learn how to stop and reappear exactly where I wanted."

Cynder can see the slight look of anger in her brother's eyes and immediately understands why, as she once had pride in her abilities.

A pride that was beaten from her at a very young age by Gaul and his army.

A pride that is finally emerging again.

"I guess I just know how to use this power better than you." she says, putting a deeper scowl on Scythe's face. Cynder gives her brother a very smug grin, then rises to her feet and leans up towards her much taller sibling's ear.

"But honestly...I think it's cause I have a really good teacher." she continues, pecking the side of his cheek, then leaning her head against Scythe's neck.

"Thanks Brother...I can't tell you how much it means, knowing you are here to help me..."

Cynder looks down at the three small insects that slammed into Scythe at full speed, smiling as they begin getting back up off the ground without dusting themselves off, just like their big purple brother would.

"...and Spyro."

"Our brother don't need help!" One of the young dragonflies remarks, now getting in between brother and sister, staring straight at Cynder. However, his tiny hand gestures back towards Scythe as he continues. "Especially from this fat, black and red, sunflower eating...lump on the ground!"

"Lump on the ground!?"

Diamond laughs, hearing the stunned and slightly annoyed tone in Scythe's voice, and decides to add more fuel to the fire.

"You haven't moved in while, Scythe...I was beginning to think you were a permanent fixture as well."

Cynder smiles as her brother lifts Sapphire up to his right horn, then crouches into a pouncing position. The tiny dragonfly clamps her small hands around his white horn, holding on for dear life as he leaps into action.

Several waves of black myst begin forming before Scythe's nose, allowing him to slip through the air without resistance. Diamond takes off, zig-zagging several times to evade, but getting no where before the fast moving drake has his paw around him.

"I am going to pretend I didn't hear you say that, Speedy!" he remarks snidely, holding the little dragonfly before his green eyes.

"How do you do that?" The white dragonfly asks, having seen Scythe move this fast before. Cynder also shows interest in his answer, as she has been hoping to learn another new technique.

The black dragon releases Diamond, looking at the three dragonflies that plowed into his left flank.

"Your brother, Spyro, has the same technique...only he uses Fire to thin the air around him and Stone to increase his weight and momentum for hard impacts." Scythe returns his eyes to Diamond, giving the last part of his answer to the one who asked. "I believe he calls it a Comet Dash, but since I use Shadow..."

"Is it called Shadow Dashing!?" Sapphire asks with an excited tone, getting Scythe to look up at her and smile.

"Exactly."

The grin that fills her face shines like the sun that begins rising above the trees in the Garden of Warfang. Sapphire then looks down at her big brother, still held firmly in Scythe's black paw.

"I was _Shadow Dashing_ , Diamond...I was Shadow Dashing with a _dragon_!" her voice is so full of pure joy that everyone feels it, including several of the workers that help maintain the gardens.

"He's not that fast, little Sapphire!" a voice calls out in jest, as several dozen dragonflies empty into the open area from the surrounding sections of the large garden.

"Your brother's just kinda slow for a dragonfly..." another remarks, as the group encircles the large black and red drake they work with every day. "...and this guy has a long stride, so I'm sure if we raced...you're buddy here would be left in the dust."

Scythe laughs, as do several others, as they've seen first hand just how fast this master Shadow dragon can move.

"I would love to show my friend how fast I can run, but I would never subject Sapphire to that realm..." he replies, knowing his speed is amplified the more he uses his Shadow power, and the young dragonfly would never be able to handle the intense cold.

Scythe gestures his paw towards Cynder, who herself is interest in seeing her brother run full out. However, he has a different idea on showing her this technique.

"...instead I will have my sister show you how fast _we_ can run."

* * *

 _What is he going to do to her?_

That was all Blake could think about now, as the black cheetah that has been staring at him finally gets up from his spot and walks over towards Shale. His eyes become even more scary as they scan the young dragoness whom lays just out of Blake's view.

He can hear her breathing increase, and the restraints that bind her to the ground, like him, begin creaking as she struggles to free herself. However, he cannot see her as they are shackled tightly to the ground, bound and muzzled in solid stone, laid out in a V pattern facing in different directions. The Black puma like cat suddenly looks at Blake, quickly leaping back over to him, seeing the young dragon trying desperately to free himself from the same bindings that hold his friend.

"What? Do you want to go first?" he asks, his voice now more scary than his eyes.

With his mouth muzzled tightly in stone, Blake is unable to answer the Cheetah Warrior's question, so he returns his eyes, with pure rage, to one who hit him and stuffed him in a smelly bag.

"Wouldn't you rather me beat her first, I might be to tired afterward to care about you." he says, and even with all four of his paws shacked firmly to the ground, Blake lunges forward a couple inches, smacking his stone muzzle into the Cheetah's face.

The black haired cat becomes enraged, slamming Blake's nose down to the ground, while holding his own in pain. The puma then kicks the young whelpling in the left flank. It draws a squeal of pain from the youngster's nostrils, making Shale shudder from the pain he feels.

"YOU LITTLE BRAT! HOW 'BOUT I KILL YOU NOW!?" the black cheetah yells, drawing a large blade from his waist and positioning it under the small dragon's throat.

Blake holds as still as possible, feeling the steel edge begin held to his neck. And though he fears for his life, he is thrilled that this evil bastard is paying attention to him and not Shale

"PUT THAT KNIFE DOWN, SHADOW!" another voice calls from behind the two bound dragons, startling the angry cheetah and his captors.

The black haired cat immediately removes his blade from Blake's neck, showing off the dull end that was pressed against his throat. He folds his paws before him and bows his head with respect.

"Sorry master..." he cries, dropping down on a knee to beg forgiveness. "...I was only trying to keep them quiet by scaring them...I was never going to harm him."

"He is worthless to me if you kill him." the angered voice growls, keeping up with the act his trusted companion was performing, know he is only trying to make his task of watching this young dragon easier.

A large brown paw suddenly comes from behind, and lowers down over the bound dragon, making sure his shackles are still secure, especially after seeing this little drake move them a few inches.

He then removes his paw from Blake, placing it on the other dragon bound to the ground in Stone.

"Why did you kidnap this little whelpling female?"

The black cheetah becomes a bit agitated himself, seeing the anger within his master's eyes.

"She attacked me when I grabbed him..." the annoyed cat replies, showing off several claw marks Shale left on his neck and face. "...I had no choice to put her in the bag, or be torn apart."

Blake can hear a very deep laugh comes from behind, then the distinct sound of rock being broken.

"You are free to go, young lady..." the deep voice commands through the laughter, removing the stone shackles from her arms and legs. "...it was not my intentions to harm you, or to bring you here. And if my friend caused you any pain, you may hit him again."

"WHAT!?"

Blake can finally see his little orange and black neighbor, as she runs into his view and strikes the black cheetah with a ferocious swat of her right paw. Shale immediately turns to him, after laying out another vicious shot to her kidnapper, and runs full speed to be by Blake's side.

However, just before she reaches him, the same large brown paw lands between the two youngsters.

"What are you doing?" the colossal dragon asks, drawing Shale's eyes up to his, showing this giant the tears that have begun flowing.

"I'm getting my boyfriend, so _we_ can leave, like you said."

Again the large dragon laughs, and with one paw, scoops Shale up in his scarred palm.

"I like you, little one..." he says, showing the small orange and black dragoness a genuine smile. He looks over at his associate, whom has begun addressing another wound to his neck, and his pride, left by this tough whelpling female.

"...you remind me a lot of... my daughter...Faith."

The large dragon suddenly becomes quiet and a single tear forms in his left eye. Shale watches as this angry giant becomes docile, losing his edge in a display of pure emotion.

"Are you OK?" she asks with actual concern, drawing another difficult smile from the largest dragon she's ever seen.

"I'm fine, young lady..." he replies, placing her back down upon the ground beside Blake. "...now I said _you_ may go...not him. So please, I am asking you to leave."

Shale sits down beside Blake, her expression becoming more stern.

"I'm not going anywhere without him." she returns adamantly, exposing her claws to prove she is ready to fight, even if the battle is pointless.

The large dragon uses his massive paw to push Shale away from her young friend, however, as she begins crying, his paw is retracted. She is quickly by Blake's side again, her paws wrapping around the young dragon tighter than the bindings holding him to the ground.

"Please...I don't want to leave now..." she continues, her tears flowing faster and faster, as she looks up to her kidnapper "...can I get back in my shackles?"

The black haired cheetah gazes at his master with a total look of surprise, as he begins smiling at her again. But what shocks him more is his answer.

"No, but you may stay here if you wish, little one..."

"My name is Shale!" she cuts in, her voice still firm and confident, and again the large dragon pauses, looking to the sky.

 _So much like you, Faith_

"Very well... Shale," he replies, looking back down at the young dragon whom he knows is no threat of breaking Blake free. "You may remain with your little friend and keep him calm. With any luck, this ordeal will all be over by morning."

His brown eyes quickly snap back to the black cat that did his dirty work.

"Did you cover your scent with the cloak I gave you, Shadow?"

"Yes Master, but that Manweresmall female may have gotten a whiff of my real scent, so I shall remain away from Warfang for a few months."

The large dragon lowers his brow with anger.

"I told you to head north, away from her kiosk!" he remarks, knowing the old mole that works the cart near the one Spyro's brother frequently visited. "She can track you down now, idiot!"

"No master..." the black cat remarks, again lowering down to his knee before showing his master a confident smile. "...I made sure my path here took me through the Putrid Swamps of the Forbidden Forest. No Manweresmall can handle the intense smells of that place."

"Is that what that was!?" Shale cuts in again, looking at Blake then making a very odd expression as her eyes return to the large brown dragon.

"I told you it wasn't _me_!" Blake mumbles through his stone muzzle.

"Yes, young lady," Shadow replies, and the orange dragon snaps her head around to him, staring at the cheetah she has attacked twice with anger. "I apologize for making you endure that, I was hoping the bag I placed you in was thick enough to keep the stench out."

Shale can see a genuine look of apprehension and this quickly gets the angered look to leave her face. She actually smiles at him before turning her eyes back to Blake.

"He's the one you need to apologize to..." she remarks, as the annoyed whelpling had hit him across the face while they were stuck together in the canvas bag. "...I ahhh...I had thought he farted."

* * *

Cynder can feel Skylar's eyes focused on her, as Spyro and Oswald look over the note left by another victim of the Terror of the Sky's wrath. She can feel the hatred returning to the one whom had finally shown acceptance, as a scared mother looks for anyone to blame in this moment of crisis.

She can also hear the nervousness within her hero's voice, as Spyro and the large fire dragon discuss a proper strategy to return the youngest members of their respective families.

However, it is the enraged crowd from the market, whom begin encircling the black dragoness, that has her frightened most.

"Please stop! This is not Cynder's fault!" Spyro argues, but his voice is cut off quickly by the encroaching group.

"NO! It is her fault! She's to blame for all of this!" is shouted, followed by more proclamations of Cynder's guilt. The crowd gets angrier with each call, until finally the last voice sums up the feelings of nearly the entire mob.

"Just give her up already, Spyro! _You,_ and the _world_ , would be better off is she were dead!"

Cynder's heart slumps further then her shoulders, as the weight of the world is placed firmly upon her back once more.

Skylar also feels her heart break, as the innocent victim she knows Cynder really is, is forced to continuing suffering, much to the delight of everyone else. However, when she sees Spyro's eyes, which open wide and fade to pure white, Skylar knows she must make a stand.

"This is wrong!" She says with conviction, stepping in between the angry group and the dragoness she knows loves all three of her sons, and would never harm any of them, especially Blake.

"Cynder did not kidnap my baby, and who's to say if we give in to the demands of this bastard...that our children will be released unharmed!?"

"I agree with your mother Spyro! We cannot just hand Cynder over in trade... " a voice calls from behind the group, forcing everyone to turn around and see the one who said this. The entire mob gasps upon noticing the one whom spoke, knowing his personal vendetta against the former Terror of the Sky is stronger than most.

However, it is the group behind him that draws the continued ohs and ahs of a now stunned crowd of onlookers.

"...we need to find out who wants her dead...more than _I_ do..." the brown and black dragon remarks almost sarcastically, stepping away from the Eight Guardians of Avalar, and strolling through the now hushed lynch mob.

Spyro stares at the dark tan and black chested dragon, whom has vowed to kill Cynder himself, not understanding why he is now defending her. However, as the large dragon gets closer to his love, making her cringe with fear, he can see the emotion that now grips him.

"We need to find another way to end this..." Brazin says, placing a paw softly upon the terrified dark dragoness' chest, staring at the spot where he struck her with a stone projectile only a few weeks earlier. His eyes rise up to hers showing the same pain he always has within, but also a calmness she has never witnessed. "...and cutting your head off is not the way to get this job done."

Everyone is startled, but none more than Cynder, whom practically collapses from nerves, however, Brazin keeps her from falling to the ground hard, supporting her frame with his own.

"Relax Spyro, I am here to help." the large Earth breather remarks, lowering Cynder gently to her stomach before turning to the purple and gold dragon and extending his right paw.

"I am no longer looking for my brother's vengeance..." Brazin grasps Spyro's forearm in a show of true camaraderie, his expression grateful, confusing the purple dragon even more, as he thought he was hated as much as Cynder herself. The brown and black drake turns to Terrador then Cyrus, whom stands by the ruler of Warfang, sobbing.

"...I was told by my new friend that his brother had already avenged him."

* * *

 **I bet you thought it would be the dragon that attacked Cynder earlier, but no, and why the change of heart for him.**

 **Stay Tuned.**

 **Oh yeah, if you noticed, our antagonist has yet to be given a name. If you have a suggestion, I'm all ears...well all eyes.**


	15. Guardians of Life

**Hey everyone...as we move into the next part of the story, I just wanna say thank you for the continued support.**

 **I received a few good names for the antagonist, but in the end, it was my friend igE who came up with a solid Earth dragon name, so thank you igE.**

 **Also thank you MCZ, Holy Cross, Robert Madden, Dragon Uprising, and DragonMaster000 for your reviews.**

 **We all have that one person that watches over us (or I hope you do) And whether it be a parent, spouse, sibling or even a good friend, that one person will stand against anything to protect you.**

 **They are our...**

* * *

Chapter 14 – Guardians of Life

Only three dragons remained in the market, as the angry crowd followed the panicked charge of a frightened teenager, who had failed at her most important task of watching her baby sister.

"They're gonna kill Cynder...and I won't have to deal with the repercussions from Spyro..." Brazin remarks with a very sarcastic tone, a wide smile crossing his blunt muzzle. "...this is perfect!"

Terrador, whom holds an inconsolable Cyrus to his side, slaps the brown dragon across the back of his head.

"Are you stupid, Brazin!?" he barks, scaring his protege straight, making him notice the teenage drake whose youngest brother is now missing. The brown and black dragon quickly shuts his mouth, sitting down, not just before the ruler of his home, but the one whom has taught him how to use his Earth skills since his father and mother died early in the war.

"Forgive me, Master Terrador." he returns quickly, drawing another angered look from the large green dragon. The Earth guardian glances down to his right, and the dark blue drake who has finally raised his head, showing Brazin the same angered look Terrador has.

"I'm sorry..." Brazin pauses, looking up to his mentor, who quickly mouths a name "...Cyrus, I didn't mean to say that in front of you."

"But you meant it!" the young dragon replies, stepping from Terrador's side, getting in the face of the dragon twice his size again. There is no trepidation this time, as the young Ice dragon has become very agitated.

"In fact...I bet you have something to do with my brother's kidnapping!"

Brazin, whom values honor above most thing in life, grasps the blue dragon with his front paws, and pushes Cyrus down to his side. The much larger adult puts his weight upon the helpless drake, getting nose to nose with him. This brings Terrador's attention, until his student shows he is in control.

"I'm not going to hurt him, Terry..." he remarks, his voice calm as he looks up to the dragon that has been a part of his life since he was a whelp. "...but I want him to understand what he just said was wrong. I would never do anything to a child..." Brazin's eyes return to Cyrus, showing his convictions "...unlike the one your big brother keeps defending."

"You _are_ stupid! Just like Master Terrador said." the Ice dragon replies with the same conviction. He places a paw upon Brazin's chest, pushing him back with a good deal of force.

"Cynder is not evil!" he continues, his voice now stronger then his grip on the Earth dragon's chest. "She is my friend. And my brother's friend...and I don't know a better dragon..."

The blue drake pauses, calming himself with several breaths, making sure he says this right, without the emotion.

"She takes all the crap you can dish out and never lashes back in defense of her honor, like you just did." he says, looking back to Terrador, whom has now placed a supporting paw upon the young dragon's back.

"You are more aggressive than her and have yet to show me the compassion... or the love... or the joy she shows me and Blake everyday." Tears begin forming in his eyes as he defends Cynder, knowing she is not the dragon everyone, even himself, had thought she was.

"Cynder is remarkable..." Cyrus' tears stop and his eyes flash with power as his attention returns to the larger dragon before him. "...and you are the _evil_ one!"

Brazin pauses himself, looking to Terrador for the support he normally gets from him, but seeing it given to Cyrus. It makes him think, wondering why the one who knows him best would side against him.

"She killed my brother."

"No, my son...the Terror of the Sky killed Tritan." the Earth Guardian returns, stepping from Cyrus' side to be with the one he helped remain focused since the last member of his family was taken from him. "And it's time you started realizing that Cynder is not that dragon. In fact, she never was."

The younger stone drake breaks down, showing his mentor the pain that has built up for almost a decade.

"I don't know if I can, Terry." he says and quickly his right paw is grasped by Cyrus.

"I thought the same way, Brazin..." the blue dragon returns, then struggles as hard as he can to produce a smile, as he recalls the first time he was introduced to the one who killed his father. "...that was until she started talking to my little brother and I realized she is not the callus dragon I saw kill my dad."

"What's going on here, Master Terrador!?" Someone asks from behind the group of three, stopping their conversation cold as they recognize the voice, as well as the nonstop rambling of his companion.

"Yes...where is everybody, cause it's almost daybreak, and though I see all the carts in their respective places, no one is tending the sh..."

The Earth Dragon holds up his right front paw, stopping the motor-mouthed dragon with a simple gesture.

"Good morning, Cyril! Volteer!" Terrador replies, pointing his raised paw down the street that leads into the Fire section of the city, where Spyro lives. "They are all heading into the Fire district to kill Cynder, so I would suggest we continue these greetings as we move in that direction."

The almost sarcastic tone is received with a smirk and pretty much the same sarcasm is given back.

"Again!" Cyril retorts, a smugness in his voice as he opens his wings to fly. His eyes focus down at the brown and black dragon he has had to pull away from Cynder and Spyro on several occasions, suddenly showing him a look of shock.

"Well, I'm surprised _you_ are not leading the group, Brazin."

The Icy dragon is about to take off down the road to intervene when this stubborn Earth Dragon's reply knocks him from the sky.

"Cynder did nothing wrong..." he says, turning to the young dragon he has quickly found great respect for. "...and we need to stop them before they hurt Cyrus' friend."

Volteer, whom is smarter than most give him credit for, understands immediately what is needed, and is gone like a shot. Flashing up to the top floor of the palace at the speed of lightning, the electric dragon is back only eleven seconds later, as it did take time for him to request his comrades presence.

"I rallied the Guardians and told them to meet us at Spyro's home, though they were not happy with the way I arrived," he says, keeping his remarks somewhat short and sweet. He points to the half dozen dragons that are now leaving the highest balcony of the castle. "We may need everyone's help to disperse _this_ crowd."

"No...I'm sure I can get them to leave on my own." Brazin remarks, his voice a shade on the creepy side as he takes off down the street. However, he looks back, singling out the young blue drake with his eyes.

"Come on Cyrus...I'm gonna need your help!" he grunts and quickly the young dragon is running by his side, listening to the plan he has for him. As his paws begin moving faster, Brazin becomes stunned, realizing he is thinking of how to help his greatest enemy.

"What can I possibly do to help?" the teenaged Ice dragon asks, looking back at _three_ Guardian Masters whom now give chase, as well as the _five_ that soar in from above.

The Earth dragon smirks at Spyro's brother, who continues running along side of the bigger drake step for step.

"Please... Keep me from _killing_ Cynder, before I get a chance to _speak_ to her."

* * *

Inside a massive cave, a young dragoness remains posted before her helpless friend, trying desperately to keep the winds that swirl around from freezing him. Her right wing draped over the blue drake, whom cannot bring his arms and legs in closer to keep himself warm.

Blake's teeth have not stop chattering for the last twenty minutes and his shuddering is only limited by the shackles that hold him down.

"I... I... I... I'm ssss..sss..ss..sss...so ka... kaa... cold." he mumbles through his muzzle and once more Shale uses the tiny bit of reserve magic all dragons can regenerate over a short period of time. However it is barley enough to keep a fire going for ten seconds in this drafty cave.

She smartly grasps several small rocks, not unlike the stones her father lays upon when he's out on the balcony of their home, and places them in a pile. Shale uses her limited breath to scorch them, then shoves several of the warmed rocks under Blake's belly.

His eyes look up at her, showing the orange dragon the countless tears that begin flowing.

"Are they too hot!?" she cries, pulling the last rock she placed out from under him to make sure the temperature is right. However, as she can feel they are perfectly warmed, Shale returns her eyes to him with a bit of anger.

"I'm so sorry..." he mumbles, breaking down as he confess. "...I'm such a Jerk."

"This isn't your fault..." she begins saying, but Blake cuts her off

"NO!" he barks, then pauses with a squeal of pain, as the muzzle's tightness causes the whelp to bit his tongue.

Blake takes a breath, as Shale moves beside him again, however, he struggles to speak as she lays her wing over to keep the warmth inside his frame.

"I treated you like garbage in the market," he continues with a very somber tone and again the tears begin flowing. "I don't know why I said what I said, but I know what I said must have hurt y..."

Shale places a paw over his mouth.

"It's okay, I know you didn't mean it." she says, hoping to stop the youngster from crying, suddenly feeling overwhelmed herself seeing Blake so emotional. However, within a second, the little orange dragoness knows exactly how to stop his crying. In fact, she smiles knowing it will not only flip his emotions, but warm his blood with rage.

"So...just stop your whining you _wittle baby_?"

"WHAT!?"

Again Blake bits his tongue, and this time Shale laughs in his face. But this also draws the attention of a very large eves-dropper.

"If you're going to tease him, Shale..." the large dragon that has kidnapped them suddenly emerges from the shadowy back area of the cave. He places his massive paw upon Blake, scaring the young girl as she hears a loud cracking noise. However, Shale smiles as the giant brown appendage rises up, exposing the two tone blue bulbous nose and face of the young dragon she is enamored with.

"...I guess I should give him a chance to yell back at you."

Blake shakes his freed head, loosening the muscles that have been held in place for the past five or six hours. He tries to look back at the dragon whom has taken him hostage, but Shale quickly grasps his face and gives him a very big kiss upon the tip of his nose

"Are you okay, Blake..." she cries...again placing another smooch upon his slightly sore honker. Her eyes look upon his, showing him how grateful she is to see his face again

"...I'm sorry I called you a baby." her voice is almost broken as she confesses. "In fact, I think you're the biggest dragon I know."

The little drake wants nothing more than to wrap anything he can around her, but his paws remain tightly shackled down. So too his wings, which are held against his side.

He is uncomfortable as hell, until now that is.

"I don't care what you call me." he replies, relaxing his head in her comforting arms.

 _Just don't let go._

"You are a very luck dragon, Young Master. Shale is very devoted to you already." the voice remarks from behind and finally Blake gets a chance to turn his head around.

All he can see is this colossus' brown nose and massive forearms, which are now stretched out and crossed before him.

"Who are you?" Blake asks with wonderment, seeing a dragon whose paws alone would barely fit in the room he and his brother Cyrus sleep.

"My name is Kooresh..." he simply replies, raising one of his giant paws to the youngster's head, then gently rubbing it. "...and I am sorry for taking you from your family."

"Then why did you!?" Shale inquires with a bit of an attitude, drawing Kooresh's shaded nose towards the angry dragoness. Seeing his attention is now focused directly upon her, the strong-willed fire breathing female quickly adds to her question.

"You don't seem to be a heartless jerk..." she continues, her voice softening with every word "...so why did you take two helpless whelplings from their mothers?"

Kooresh pauses, suddenly feeling more guilty, however, a grin soon crosses his giant snout.

" _You_ are _far_ from _helpless_ , young lady."

Shale's anger returns as the large dragon stands up and turns to leave the cave.

"THAT'S NOT AN ANSWER!" she barks

Kooresh pauses, looking back to his tiny captives, and thought his face remains in darkness, they both can see his teeth as he smiles wider.

"I know." he replies sarcastically, then continues out of the room.

* * *

Up on the top floor of the Dragon's Palace is the most important room in the entire city, as the tallest tower in Warfang houses the Eight guardians of Avalar. Many of the issues that effect the world are discussed inside this particular room, though you would never tell by looking at it.

 _ **CRACK**_

The sound of fifteen multicolored ivory balls being struck by one fast moving white one fills this vast room with a tremendous sound. It sends a ripple of thunder reverberating against the four walls as the rack is shredded by an expert break, sinking the solid and striped blue colored balls into the far corner pockets.

The remaining balls on the table barely stop before the large black and orange chested drake points his cue and grunts something inaudible. His voice is unclear to mostly everyone, as his vocal cords were cut clean during the first of his many tours of duty during the war.

However, one of the other five dragons in the room is able to translate his grumblings and quickly his voice comes from across the room.

"Fourteen in the corner!" is called by a dragon of the same color, confidence in his voice as he interprets the grumblings of his brother and best friend in the world.

The larger black drake smiles, aims the shot his little brother called for him, then strikes the cue ball with a perfect amount of English, pocketing the fourteen with authority and leaving his next shot as simple to make as the last.

"Nine in the side..." the younger brother remarks, as the black dragon grunts again. He then looks up at the three sets of eyes that keep trying to read his facial expressions.

"...and _I_ will raise three silver."

"Three silver!" A female voice cries out and her cards are quickly mucked into the pot with anger. This white dragoness rises from her seat, turning from the game she was playing, watching the nine ball fall into the side pocket of the table on the other side of the room.

"Nice shot, Kelvin." she remarks with a softer tone, noticing her fellow guardian has left himself another easy shot on the maroon striped ball, and again several grunts are given.

"He said thanks, Crystal..." the younger brother remarks and quickly she cuts him off.

"I could figure that one out, Infurnus." she bickers at the one who pushed her off a pair of Kings, and again Kelvin grunts several inaudible words, followed by a scratchy laugh.

"Oh... Is that so, _Grumbles_..." the younger sibling remarks, calling Kelvin by a name he uses to annoy him, as his older brother mouths off. "...lets see if she can interpret the rest of your crap for the remainder of that game, cause I'm tired of being your personal translator!"

"He said fifteen in the corner, Monsoon." Crystal offers to the blue drake holding the other cue, waiting patiently for his opponent to mess up.

Kelvin smiles before striking another perfect shot, leaving himself and his interpreter an easy call for the next.

"Twelve in the corner." the white dragon remarks confidently after the grunts of her fellow guardian, and Infurnus grins as she guesses his grumblings with perfection. However, the younger brother's smile fades fast as his raise is finally answered by the other female in the room.

"There's your three silvers..." a blue and white marbled paw reaches out, splashing the pot with four coins of precious metal. "...and I'll raise you one gold."

"Damn it, Sky!" an older voice grunts as his hand is flung into the muck. "You keep getting all the cards today!"

This gray and black scaled drake rises from his spot at the table to stretch. He does not look back towards the pool table, as he knows the game was over the minute Kelvin grasped his cue stick. However, he is interested in the game before him, as Infurnus begins fiddling with his stack of silver coins.

"I'm sure you didn't catch the flush this time... Did you?" he asks, hoping to get a tell from the stone faced blue and white Wind guardian, knowing she only took a single card from the draw. He looks down at the three nines and two fives he has in his paw and smiles inside. "Well I think you are trying to buy the hand again."

Infurnus tosses ten silver coins in the pot, then the last ten he has in front of him.

"I'll see your gold coin, and raise you another."

Kelvin grunts several times as he hears his brother's money hit the pot, and again Crystal practically guesses his words without fault.

"Eleven in the corner..." she says, then turns to the poker table to finish what she thinks she heard. "...and you're an idiot if you think Sky's bluffing, Bro."

The younger drake gives the Guardian of Light a very odd look, as her translation was damn near perfect, and sadly, so too was Kelvin's intuition.

"I call!" Sky remarks with an ease in her voice, placing one of the many gold coins she has before her into the pot.

"Wellllll...I GOT A FULL HOUSE, BABY! YEAH!" Infurnus barks, looking at his brother as he shows his hand proudly.

Sky on the other hand remains very calm, laying her cards on the table atop his.

"And I have _all_ of the eights in the deck."

Kelvin begins laughing, hearing his brother's full boat sunk by four of a kind, then hunkers down and pockets the eleven.

"That's not funny, Bro!" he remarks, as Kelvin continues chuckling while chalking his cue.

The large dragon scans the table for a moment, then stops and looks at his brother across the room. He grunts at him for more than a few seconds, making the room a bit uncomfortable, as they know big brother is giving little brother a bit of a chastising.

"I know, Kelvin... I know, but she bets everything...I just thought I had her this time... Okay! " he says, then looks over at Monsoon, whom is still waiting his turn to play.

"Thirteen in the side."

The black and orange chested drake gets up from the poker table, leaving the last of his allowance behind, padding over to the pool table to watch his brother's mastery of another opponent in his favorite game.

"It was stupid of me to think I won before winning...but, By the Ancestors...I had a _full house_." he continues as Kelvin slices the orange striped ball into the side pocket using the perfect speed, setting himself up with an optimal angle for a final shot on the eight ball.

"It's like now...anyone would be nuts to think you could lose this game, yet I'm sure I can get her to take a bet on it, cause she's _crazy_ and will call _anything_."

Sky nods her head up and down while pulling more of the young fire dragon's chips into her pile, making Kelvin grunt for a good few seconds once more before pointing his cue to the corner pocket near his opponent.

"Yeah! Right! Like you could lose this game now." Infurnus remarks, as his brother reminds him the game is not over until it is over.

"It would be about a thousand to one for you to miss that shot."

"I'll take that bet!" Sky remarks sarcastically, holding up a single bronze coin. "Maybe I'll be nice and give you back enough to get yourself a dandelion for lunch."

Infurnus' rolls his eyes, however, Kelvin grunts a strong reply

"Make it a _gold_ coin... and you have a _deal_!?" Infurnus translates, as his brother ups the ante a hundred fold.

"Are you nuts?"

Sky quickly grasps one of the gold coins she took from Kelvin's brother earlier in the game and tosses it to the eldest dragon in the room.

"Can you hold the bet, Onyx!" she says as the old gray Shadow Master catches her portion of the bet. However, as he looks to Kelvin, whom chalks his cue stick again, the elder dragon smiles.

"Do you have a thousand gold coins for me to hold as well, Kelvin, cause I can guarantee you'll never see them again if you that much gold to me!"

Everyone in the room laughs at the elder guardian, whose control of Shadow magic would make it easy for him to disappear with a large windfall of coins. However, after a good belly laugh by all in the room, Kelvin hunkers down to make the shot.

A sudden hush falls over the room as the black an orange dragon draws his cue back to strike.

 _ **CRACK**_

The sound of thunder crashing inside the room scares the hell out of everyone, including Kelvin, who drives his cue into the felt table.

"WHAT THE HELL, VOLTEER!?" Everyone barks, except Kelvin, whom snaps his cue in two pieces, then shows one of the sharp ends to the yellow drake.

"Well I guess it was a bad time to come unannounced, but since there is an overwhelming amount of trouble at Spyro's house, you need to all stop your whining and follow me...before the entire city kills Cynder."

Volteer is gone as fast as he came, leaving the group a bit stunned by his short appearance and speech.

"Again!?" Sky remarks with a sarcastic tone. However, her grin fades quickly, knowing Cynder's defense has become a primary issue for the guardians. "It's not right, how they keep picking on her."

Several grunts come from Kelvin, stopping Sky's comments as she recalls how this exceptionally powerful dragon lost his ability to speak.

"I agree...she has been falsely accused her entire life." Infurnus translates with a bit of surprise too, as he knows his brother's injury was caused by a tail strike from the dark dragoness.

Kelvin looks at his little brother with a smile, then places a paw upon the scar just above his Adams Apple.

"She did not mean for this to happen, Brother. Cynder was forced to hunt down her own kind...and kill without feeling." Infurnus continues translating aloud, becoming even more proud of his big brother. "And now everyone wants to hunt _her_ down without feeling. But we cannot allow that, cause she is..."

Kelvin pauses his grunting, takes a deep breath, then looks around at all his comrades.

"...In...no...cent!"

Everyone understands the difficulty of what Kelvin did, including a brother who barely hears a real word spoken from his older sibling himself, knowing how much it hurts. Kelvin turns to Infurnus and smiles before grunting something for his ears alone, but he translates it aloud.

"Cynder has shown me knows how to _love_ and that is all the proof I needed, brother."

Kelvin heads for the balcony and is quickly followed by his fellow guardians.

"So... I guess I'll just wait for you guys here then? You know... Out of trouble and completely safe." Infurnus remarks, as he is not an actual guardian, just the brother of the strongest master of the Elemental Eight, and the one who can translate his distorted speech. "Maybe I can straighten up the place while you're all doing your _'Guardian thing'_."

Kelvin grunts several times as he reaches the threshold of the door, seeing the vast amount of citizens heading into the Fire district of the city.

Infurnus' shows his big brother a look of surprise, not believing what his brother just ordered him to do, however, his paws begin moving quickly as he answers the newest fire guardian.

"Of course...I'll get more help and come back!" he replies with excitement, running into the other room where several elite guards remain posted. "We'll be only a minute behind you!"

Kelvin smiles while grunting at Crystal, whom did a good job of translating his garbled speech while shooing pool. However, this time she is completely clueless to his rambling, until he gestures his paw to the door his brother just left from.

"Close the door?"

He nods again, then gestures his paw, making Crystal slide the stone lock across, sealing the door to the Guardian's Perch, making sure his baby brother remains locked within the tower.

"Per...fect!"

* * *

 **Well, now that everyone has been introduced, I think, it's time to find a new gear.**


	16. Head on a Platter

**Sorry about the wait, I had some issues while writing this chapter. To tell you the truth, I'm not 100% happy with it, but I needed to clean up some stuff and move the story along. Still learning how to put together a cohesive story, but isn't that what FF is all about?** **So this chapter may be a bit choppy, but it will finally lead us into the next part.**

 **Thank you, and I hope you will enjoy**

* * *

Chapter 15 Head on a Platter

After only a few tense moments the suspense was over, as everyone dispersed without incident. The crowd was rowdy at times, but never got physical, especially with Spyro and all eight Guardians remaining within a few paw lengths of Cynder, keeping the mob from doing what the ransom note had asked.

However, to everyone's surprise, mostly Cynder's, the Hero of Avalar is not the most vocal dragon in her defense, nor is he the real reason she has kept her head.

"YOU HEARD ME!" Brazin barks in the face of the last few drakes who've stayed behind, all of them with a personal vendetta against the Terror of the Sky for her past crimes. However, they cannot get past the Earth Dragon, whom moves the ground they stand on with a flick of his paws.

"I said Cynder is off limits!"

" _You_ , of all dragons, should not be defending her!" a red drake retorts with anger, returning to his feet after the ground was literally pulled out from under him. He gets back in the face of a now former friend, but does not get physical, knowing it would be pointless to attack a superior fighter.

So he uses his hate-filled words to strike back at him, hoping to break the stone dragon's will.

"Your brother is spinning in the grave that _she_ put him in."

"Enough!"

Skylar's enraged voice shuts the argument down in an instant. Even in her state of emotional distress, she has become tired of hearing the relentless verbal assault against another innocent victim.

"She didn't kill his brother, nor did she kill my husband, or any other citizen of Avalar for that matter!" Skylar argues, striding away from the other two parents whose child has been taken.

"Cynder is not the one that took our babies, and she is not the one who we should be wasting our anger and energy on right now."

The sizable blue dragoness gets nose to nose with the one who has been the most vocal in cutting Cynder's head off.

"And If you have a problem with that, then _I_ will waste some of _my_ anger and energy on you."

The red dragon bites his tongue, but gives his former friend Brazin a look that says enough.

"Forgive me ma'am." he grumbles, backing down from Skylar, then simply walking away.

Spyro's mother stares out at the rest of the group that has remained after ninety-nine percent of the mob left.

"And that goes for the rest of you!"

Her voice booms, making sure half the block can hear her decree.

"Anyone who even _tries_ to harm this dragoness will not answer to my son!" her eyes flash with power like Spyro's, or any other dragon who has been pushed to the limit of their emotional control, showing she is ready to kill if necessary.

"They will answer to _ME_!"

Only grumbling and whispers can be heard, as no one dares puts a solid voice to their negative response. They look around at each other, and after realizing none have the nerve to step up, everyone walks away.

"I'm sorry..." Cynder remarks, as the tension lowers to near zero, allowing her voice to work again, however, as Skylar snaps her head around and yells, the dark dragoness tenses right back up.

"AND YOU STOP SAYING YOUR SORRY ALREADY!"

Spyro's mom barks at Cynder unlike any other dragon ever has, not even Malefor. Her voice is strict, yet comforting, making her realize Skylar is not angry at for what has happened, but for taking the blame...again.

The large blue Ice dragoness gets nose to nose with Cynder. She does not cower in fear, though she does remains frozen in place, but her green eyes remain locked on the one before her, instead of lowering down to the ground with shame.

"You are not to blame for any of this, do you understand me Cynder?"

Her voice is soft this time, but still strict, and Cynder quickly answers with a nod of her head. Skylar softens and places a paw on the dark dragoness' back, pulling her into an embrace.

"Good, cause I need you to be strong for my son now, so he can focus on the real problem at hand."

* * *

The moment Cynder's cry of pain hit Scythe's ear, when Shannon tackled her to the ground, he dropped his playful demeanor. In an instant, the nearly dozen dragonflies, that had provoked him into a race, were left in the dust as the Shadow dragon switched gears.

The large black and red drake shreds his way through hundreds of orchids and into the small grove of trees that line the north side of the garden. He is about to expose himself to the public, against the order of Spyro, when he is forced to come to a sudden grinding stop.

"SCYTHE!" A tiny blue dragonfly heads at him from the opposite direction, calling his name with fear in her voice.

"They're gonna kill Cynder!"

Scythe quickly moves Sapphire from his path with a gentle swipe of his right paw, then returns to his full speed charge towards Spyro's home, hearing the rambunctious crowd that approaches. However, before he leaps out, showing the world the sibling of the Terror of the Sky, the black dragon notices Spyro has already intervened.

The Shadow master grinds to a stop again, just within the last row of sycamores, keeping his large frame hidden inside the dark canopy of shade these trees provide.

"BACK AWAY FROM HER!" Spyro barks at the encroaching mob. The warning quickly repeated by Oswald, whom holds his hysterical daughter from striking the black dragoness.

However, the voice he hears the loudest is now inside his head, holding Scythe put with a very soft spoken warning.

"Don't you dare under mind what my brother is doing."

"Get out of my ear Sparx."

Scythe watches the yellow dragonfly emerge from his immediate right side, an agitated look on his face.

"You know you cannot go out there." he argues with a softer voice, as Scythe's eyes return to the growing crowd that has cornered his sister against the forest where he stands.

"If you show yourself before my brother can prove Cynder is not who they think she is, then they will never believe him, and they will kill you, and her... _and him_."

Scythe rolls his eyes at the little dragonfly.

"They will not _kill_ the Hero of Avalar..." He begins to say, knowing how this world now worships the ground Spyro walks on.

However, Sparx knows differently, and he quickly cuts the large dragon off, making sure Scythe understands the outcome of his actions if he steps out of the Shadows.

"The Guardians will have no choice but to kill my brother...cause he will go crazy if they decide to rush Cynder. And we will be right back where we started, when Malefor took the world in his paw."

Sparx looks back at his brother with great concern, as he can tell Spyro is struggling to hold his dark power at bay, seeing the luster of his purple scales begin darkening.

"There's only one way that she gets out of this, and that's by letting my brother do the talkin..." the little dragonfly pauses his speech as he noticed Brazin now cutting through the crowd.

"Oh crap!"

Both Sparx and Scythe's attention are taken by the brown dragon that now barks out a warning to the crowd, and not the one they were expecting.

"Did he just say that?"

Scythe's question is not answered immediately, as Sparx is as stunned as he is, hearing a decree of protection from a dragon that hates Cynder with a passion. And as Brazin stands his ground against several threats, the little dragonfly becomes even more stunned.

"Am I really seeing this!?"

* * *

There was a dead silence that filled the large game room atop the palace, unlike any silence this room has ever experienced. Even during the most dramatic poker hands between Sky and Cyril, never has the room become this hushed.

Volteer himself has not said a word in the last moment, as even he is stunned silent by the proposal given by Brazin.

"You had better be joking!" Spyro finally barks, as Cynder begins shuddering with rage again, angered by what the stone dragon had said without trepidation.

"Of course I don't mean cut her _real_ head off, Spyro." Brazin remarks with some humor in his voice, striding over to a marble sculpture of one of the eight guardians. And with an expert's touch, Cyril's stone head comes off cleanly in the Earth master's paws.

"Ah hem!" The blue drake grunts with anger, however, since the deed has already been done, the Ice Guardian can do nothing more than stare at his head being carried over to the purple dragon.

"This is identical in size..." the earth dragon remarks matter of factually, then smiles at Cyril while handing the blue drake's head to Spyro. "...and it shows the same amount of emotion as the original."

The Ice Guardian lowers a single brow at Brazin, showing him his disapproval at the continued sarcastic tone, though he is unable to give a retort, as the others begin picking up on the Earth dragon's odd idea.

"You want to use a granite decoy of Cynder's head?" Sky remarks, as Spyro begins examining the stone face of Cyril.

"That's actually a clever plan." is murmured from several other guardians.

"It is a pretty good likeness of him." the purple dragon adds, then looks up at the blue blood guardian with a smirk. "And it's cold as ice, so I guess there is not much of a difference from the real thing."

All eight Guardians give a good laugh, including Cyril, whom is unable to hold back his small showing of emotion, seeing Spyro's normally jovial attitude returning. However one dragon in the room is not laughing, and Brazin quickly picks up on this.

"I hope you start realizing, very soon, that I'm trying to help you Cynder, cause your attitude towards me is not helping."

The Earth dragon startles everyone in the room as his voice suddenly changes from lighthearted to serious. He looks upon the dragoness that is showing disinterest in everything he says, as if he is plotting against her.

"Well I'm still wondering if all of this is not just a part of _your_ plan."

Spyro immediately gets between Brazin and Cynder, as the now posturing brown and black dragon squares up to her in anticipation of striking. Though, with the purple dragon standing in his way, Brazin can only argue back.

"Just what in the hell are you insinuating, Cynder!?"

"YOU TOOK BLAKE TO GET BACK AT ME! AND EVERYONE HERE KNOWS IT!"

Without hesitation, Cynder barks right back in his face. Her eyes well up with tears, fearing she will never see the young dragon that has helped her feel the warmth of the sun every morning.

Brazin's blood boils hearing the same accusation that came from Cyrus, however, unlike that moment, the Earth dragon becomes upset, not irate. He can see the same accusing eyes coming from most in the room, including the purple dragon himself, and it crushes him.

"I swear... I didn't have anything to do with this... I would never, ever hurt a child."

His voice is a bit shaky and broken, but that is from emotion as his eyes could never be more honest.

"I know you didn't." Spyro replies, seeing the pain he is causing by judging Brazin for his past. He quickly shows the brown and black earth breather a more compassionate gaze, then offers his paw in forgiveness.

"I can see it in your eyes that you would never harm someone so young and innocent..." He looks around at the eight Guardians, then back to the one he loves. "...but you never gave _her_ a chance to explain either."

Spyro pauses for a moment, then looks over at Terrador.

"May we have the room please?" he asks, and without disagreement all eight guardians head for the exit, leaving Spyro, Cynder and Brazin alone in their private conference chamber.

An odd moment of silence fills the room, and more so as Spyro turns towards the balcony.

"Now, I am going to sit over here and wait for the two of you to settle this." he pauses again, looking dead into Brazin's eyes. "And I wouldn't suggest taking a swing at her while I'm out of reach..." Spyro smirks as he lays down on his gold belly, his forepaws crossed to keep himself propped up.

"...cause she will hurt you."

Brazin grunts, however, as his attention returns to Cynder, he can see something different in her eyes. She is angry, and it is confusing to him, as her eyes still show fear and pain. They are so different from the emotionless gaze he saw when the Terror of the Sky took his brother.

"You still think I did this?"

Cynder's eyes begin to show less anger and more fear, as she realizes now that Brazin is telling the truth.

"Who could have taken him then?" She begs and quickly Brazin realizes he may also have misjudged, hearing the pain in her voice that he knows all to well.

"I don't know what kind of trash would dare do this..." the Earth dragon remarks, stopping himself from placing a paw upon Cynder's shoulder as she breaks down crying for her friend.

"...especially taking two little babies like Blake and Shale."

Spyro suddenly chuckles, then looks over at Cynder, whom now has a small grin cross her face as well.

"Wow...I'm almost glad he's not here to hear that!" the purple dragon remarks, knowing his little brother hates being called a baby, even after only a week. It makes Cynder laugh, taking more of her anger away, but mostly showing the stone dragon that stands before her a range of emotions he never though she could feel.

"You really do miss him? Don't you?"

The redundant question is answered in less than a second, and with the same aggravated tone he would have if asked the same stupid question.

"Of course I miss him!" She replies, but never does he expect the next words out of her mouth, nor the pain in which these words are spoken.

"Other than Spyro, he's the only friend I have."

The purple dragon lowers his head, as he knows the truth that she speaks. He becomes shocked as she continues, revealing a secret that most know, but won't share.

"No one in this city likes me...they all either hate me or fear me or think I'm still under the Dark Master's control..." Cynder pauses, looks at the largest statue in the room, then returns her truth-filled eyes to Brazin. "...including Terrador."

Spyro does not dispute this statement, as the ruler of Warfang still seems distant when in conversation with her.

Heck, even Volteer is short when speaking to Cynder.

"I've never once been asked to help in the rebuilding of our home, nor am I asked to do anything but get away from everybody." she breaks down crying, forcing Spyro up on his feet and quickly to her side.

"They think I'm just a cold blooded killer."

The purple dragon envelops her in his arms and wings, trying desperately to stop her from shuddering to pieces.

"Easy Cynder..." He begs as she continues shaking and crying "...it's okay sweetie...you are not a killer. You were forced to do his bidding"

"I'm sorry... I didn't know what I was doing." She continues, the pain in her voice making the stone dragon understand more of who she really is.

"Please, Cynder..." Brazin remarks, grasping Spyro's arm, and lowering it so she can see his face, and the pain he is now feeling. "...I'm sorry."

The stone dragon takes a moment, waiting for Spyro to calm Cynder down enough to ask a very difficult request.

"May I speak with her alone, Master Spyro? I promise... I will not cause any more trouble."

The purple dragon's eyes are quickly to Cynder's, awaiting her response which comes with a strong gaze and a subtle nod. After a long pause, he pecks the dark dragoness' lips, then heads for the exit that the guardians left through.

"Just a reminder not to mess with her, Brazin, cause Cynder has knocked me to the ground a few times when I push her buttons." the hero of Avalar remarks a bit sarcastically before walking out the door. He stops at the last moment then looks back at the stone dragon with a smile.

"And she _loves_ me."

Brazin can see the slight reddening of Cynder's cheeks, as Spyro blows her another kiss before leaving, however, that cheery look disappears the moment the door closes behind him.

"What do you want from me!?"

Her voice startles Brazin as her emotions literally flip one hundred eighty degrees.

"I only want to talk..." he begins to say, but Cynder turns away.

"I've been trying to talk, but you don't listen..." she grumbles, turning back to show the rage in her eyes. "...and now, with what has happened, you want to speak to me...WHY!?"

Brazin is stunned that he is backing down from her, but he remains calm in his response, hoping to stop this conversation from becoming a shouting match.

"Because we need to settle our differences, if we're to help your friend get home safe."

His words soften the black dragoness, so to do his eyes, which show honesty. Cynder takes a deep breath, composing herself as well. It is the first time she has ever had a chance to speak with a victim of her rampage through the dragon race, and the only thing she can think to say is quickly from her mouth.

"I'm sorry..." Cynder begins, but Brazin puts his paw over her muzzle.

"You don't need to apologize for getting angry at me..." he starts saying, but this makes Cynder angrier. With a fast move of her paw she grasps Brazin's arm and pulls his palm from her narrow snout.

"I'M NOT APOLOGIZING FOR GETTING MAD, YOU JERK!" she barks, but quickly settles down. The black dragoness becomes a bit tentative, as she tries to recall one of many speeches she has rehearsed with Spyro.

"I'm sorry... for what I did to your brother, and how much that hurt you..." tears begins falling from her eyes, as she envisions the younger face of Brazin and the moment she ruined his life. However, knowing he risks an emotional reaction from a very distraught dragoness, Brazin removes his arm from Cynder's grasp and places his paw over her mouth again.

"Stop. Please." he says, a tear now forming in his right eye. "I can see now, you are not the same evil beast that killed Tritan, and for you to keep apologizing for that only proves that I am the one that needs to apologize."

They stare at one another for a moment, both stunned at the others reaction. The silence becomes so deafening, that both drakes can hear their respective hearts pounding.

"I never gave you a chance, because deep down, I just wanted someone to blame, and to hate, for what happened to him." Brazin releases a deep cleansing breath, as these words almost relieve his pain. He looks upon Cynder with a different pair of eyes, ones that are no longer clouded in rage and vengeance.

"I'm sorry I hurt you, Cynder..."

The black dragoness quickly smothers his blunt muzzle with her paw, stopping his apology cold.

"We both had no control of our actions, or our emotions." she returns with a slight smile, wiping the tear from his right eye as she removes her black paw from his nose. "I only hope, that in the future, we can help each other keep control of those emotions."

Brazin gives a slight nod of his head, along with the same little smile.

"I would have no issues with that, Ms. Cynder." he replies, offering his paw in friendship, and quickly the Shadow dragoness takes it, pulling him against her chest in an embrace.

"Thank you for finally listening to me, Brazin. I owe you a debt of gratitude that I hope to repay one day." she says, overwhelmed with emotion, as she has finally made progress with one of her many victims.

"Well that's one down, and what...about twenty eight hundred and fifty to go, Cynder." he says a bit sarcastically, and the black dragoness backs away with a very cheeky grin herself.

"Are you sure the number is that _low_?"

Both increase their smiles, then begin laughing. It completely surprises the two dragons that walk in the door at that moment.

"Am I seeing this, Spyro!?"

Terrador's voice startles Brazin and Cynder, yet both remain interlocked in an embrace of new found support and friendship.

"Yes you are." Spyro replies, his voice a bit stern as he looks upon the wing Cynder has draped around the brown dragon. "And honestly... I'm not really enjoying the view."

Cynder smiles at her hero, whom has never seen any other dragon, especially a male dragon, this close to his girl. She quickly adds to a burning jealousy that she's never witnessed before, by wrapping her red wing further around the larger stone dragon.

"That's not a smart thing to do in front of him..." Brazin removes Cynder's wing with a simple bump of his shoulder, all the while staring at Spyro, whose jaw is now wide open. However, being the stubborn sarcastic Earth dragon he is, Brazin decides to build up the fire Cynder started. "...you could blow our perfect cover... _Cindy_."

Spyro and Cynder do a double-take as Brazin love taps the Shadow dragoness' slender hind quarters with his tail. However, Terrador, who knows his good friend's sarcastic side, and who understands the value of a good joke, struggles to remain absolutely silent as the Earth dragon drops gasoline on the fire.

"Well...Its a damn good thing he didn't walk in while we were kissing."

* * *

 **OK, now I know what you thinking, I think. You think Spyro and Cydner are going to doubt each other, and I'm trying to wedge Brazin in between them.**

 **NO...I think.**

 **Brazin is going to have his fun, and so will I, and he will see what is needed to be seen. I know that's saying a lot, while saying very little, but you know what I'm saying, so I'll just say this.**

 **I hope you'll enjoy, and a review is always appreciated.**


	17. The Kind-Hearted Kidnapper

**It's been a tough month for me personally. This is leading to the lengthy pauses between chapters. So, please bare with me**

 **Thank you guyz for the reviews, and MCZ and extra shout out for the cookies...I enjoyed them.**

* * *

Chapter 16 The Kind-Hearted Kidnapper

Blake's shuddering was starting to annoy the young orange dragoness, whom kept a small pile of warmed rocks by her side, however, no matter how many she placed under his belly, the small blue dragon remains cold and miserable.

"Would you stop already!?" Shale argues, getting the younger drake to stare at her with a look of anger and confusion.

"Do ooo yo...you think I'm..mmm...enjoying mmm..my..self?" he replies, his voice cracking with the chills that continue to climb up his spine. "Whhat wooould yooo ooo like me too oo dooo oo?"

Shale slides another rock out from under his belly, replacing it with a fresh one.

"By the ancestors! Aren't you an _Ice_ dragon!?" She returns, shaking her head at the fact he is freezing in a room that even she does not consider cold.

"If he is then you need to stop doing that." Shadow's voice suddenly remarks from the cave entrance, and quickly the black cat runs inside the room. His paws are under the blue dragon, removing the remaining heated stones. "You're only making it harder for him to warm himself."

Blake stops shuddering the moment the last rock is out from under his stomach, and an odd look of relief crosses his face.

"I've been making it worse!?" Shale's voice is filled with anguish, as she has been vigilant for the past two hours, trying desperately to keep Blake warm.

"How's that possible?"

The black haired cheetah warrior gives a bit of a smile, then walks over to a small collecting pool. He grasps a bowl that he had feed Blake with earlier, rinsing out the remnants before filling it with fresh water.

"He's about four years old now...right?"

"Three!" Shale returns quickly, a giant smile on her face as Blake roll his eyes. Shadow also grins, seeing how well these two are getting along during this crisis.

"Blake is just starting to feel the powers his body can produce, not unlike what you must have experienced when you were around this age." he says, standing up and walking over to the young drakes with the bowl of cool water in his right paw. He places it down for them to drink, staring directly into the questioning red eyes of Shale.

"I was never freezing cold like this?" she says, getting a very big laugh from the large cat.

"You are a fire dragon, sweetie...you should have felt something completely different."

Shadow finds a spot before the young dragons to sit, all the time staring at Blake, a rather coy smile on his face. He knows he is about to hit that age, and his eyes suddenly turn to Shale his grin increases in size.

"Do you remember having a thirst that was unbearable, and no matter what you did or how much you drank, you just couldn't quench it?"

The young dragoness eyes open wide, answering Shadow's question without a word, and allowing him to continue speaking about what most dragons learn about themselves between the ages of three and four.

"Your parents took you to the Ancestral Cave at that moment, did they not?" he asks, though he already knows the answer, as Shale's stunned look becomes more apparent.

"How do you know that?"

Shadow's smile increases as his black paw emerges from behind his back with a small satchel. Blake's eyes immediately lock upon the small bag, as a soft voice speaks to him from within its contents.

"What is that?" he says, his voice no longer shuddering from the cold. In fact, the young dragon is so caught up in the voice he can hear, that he no longer feels the pain of cold.

"It's an ancestral gem." Shale returns with complete disbelief, as the black cat reveals a small blue sliver of crystal.

The voice gets loud in Blake's ears, leaving him in a near trance. He stares uncontrollably at the shiny gem, unable to understand what he hears, but wanting nothing more than to hear what it has to say.

"Not yet Shadow, I don't want him to hurt his little friend when he...goes off." Kooresh's voice is heard from behind, as he walks into the room. The colossal dragon lays himself beside Blake, craning his head down to look upon the two youngster he has made his unwilling guests.

"And I actually want to see this, cause it has been a while since I have seen a whelpling become a dragon."

"What do you mean... _goes off_?" Blake replies, as he is starting to get nervous, suddenly feeling odd within his own scales.

"Tell me something...are you cold?" the large dragon asks, reaching out a paw to his friend, and taking the tiny blue gem in his massive palm.

Blake starts shaking his head up and down, but after a moment, he notices he is not really feeling the room's cool temperature. In fact, he feels warm, as if he were bathing in the mid day sun.

"Not anymore...I think."

His voice shows how nervous he is and Kooresh smiles wider.

"Don't be afraid..." He holds his massive paw before the youngster, allowing him to hear the gem speak more clearly. "...just listen to what your ancestors have to tell you."

The small blue drake becomes completely entranced again, as the voice within now sound audible.

 _Feel the Icy flow of a glacial river running through your veins and breathe in the coldest winds from the highest mountain tops._

The blue dragon's eyes suddenly flash with power, turning pure white for an instant before returning to normal.

"Oh wow! He's gonna pop faster than I thought, isn't he?" Shadow remarks, looking around for a place to quickly protect himself from the fallout. "He's already feeling that gem's power and you've yet to smash the thing on the ground."

The black cat finds a large stalagmite to hide behind, but still allows himself a good view of the show.

Shale begins to back up as well, feeling a sudden chill that emerges from her friend's body, but Kooresh scoops her up in his paw before she can get too far.

"You want to see your friend's power come to life?" he asks softly, as her eyes remain locked upon the little dragon, still bound in stone from the shoulders down.

Shale nods her head, but shows some fear, as another blast of cold air hits her in the face.

"Then toss that gem at him and hold on tight." he says, as the small blue crystal sits in the same paw that she is held in.

Shale can see the glowing ancestral crystal begin to vibrate, almost pulling itself toward the one that is craving its power, just like the one her parents had smashed in front of her last year. However, the Fire dragoness also remembers what came next, and the damage she caused to a small cave her mother and father brought her into.

"But I burned that entire room to a crisp." she cries with concern, looking down at the blue gem in Kooresh's huge paw. "Won't he turn this place into an iceberg"

"He's strong, but he's not that strong. Though, it will get a bit colder in here, of this I am sure, he will not hurt us." the large drake replies with a grin, looking down at Blake, whose eyes now beg for the gem's power. He then turns his attention to Shale as she picks the small blue crystal up in her paw, a look of uncertainty on her face.

"Those tiny rooms are designed to let your parents feel the power you possess. Whereas, this cave will allow the energy to expand outward. All we will feel is a strong blast of cold wind."

Shale, held several feet up in Kooresh's paw, looks down at Blake, whose eyes are firmly locked on the gem in her grasp.

"Well, I really don't like the cold..." She says with a bit of an attitude, filling her mouth with flame in anticipation of what will come. Shale looks up at Kooresh, whom seems annoyed with her proclamation, until she smiles at him, allowing some of the fire to seep out. "...so I hope you don't mind if I try to stay warm."

Then, without another warning, the young girl drops the gem.

* * *

For the last five minutes Brazin has been hard at work, sculpting, performing a task that he has been given on eight prior occasions, due to his incredible talent for detail. His works line the walls of the Guardian's Perch, as this young stone-carving apprentice has the skillful paws of a master already.

His precision and technique would make even the harshest critic beg to watch him perform his craft, yet this is not what has all eight guardians' attention, as a disagreement between Spyro and Cynder has come to a head.

"YOU'RE NOT COMING WITH ME AND THAT'S FINAL!"

Everyone in the room is astonished at the tone of voice Spyro just used, including the Shadow dragoness herself, as he has never, ever raised his voice towards her like that. However, after only a brief moment of pause, Cynder is back in the purple hero's face, snapping at him with the same fierceness in her words.

"IT'S NOT YOUR DECISION!"

She suddenly disappears into a myst of Shadow, slipping past Spyro and reemerging from the darkness by the door.

"I'M COMING WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!"

Spyro snaps his head to the right, hearing a slight chuckle coming from his older sibling, whom after speaking with Scythe, has found his rightful place beside his brother's golden horn

"WHAT'S SO FUNNY!?"

Sparx does not flinch at his brother's attitude, in fact, he relishes this moment, seeing Spyro struggle with the choice he had said would come back to 'bite him in the butt' one day.

"I told you she was gonna be a hassle...but oh no...you never listen to me...Do you?" he says, lowering down to his brother's nose and tapping it gently as if to tell him everything will be alright.

The anger that fills Spyro's eyes force Sparx to drop his sarcastic tone...somewhat.

"Soooo...are you gonna just let her walk all over you like that?" he continues, grasping his brother's right nostril tightly and pointing at the door she just exited from. "Why don't you go get Cynder back in here, so you can at least go over the plan with her."

"I SAID SHE'S NOT COMING, SPARX!" Spyro returns with the same ferocity he used towards Cynder, but the tiny dragonfly gets right up in his younger brother's face.

"AND JUST HOW ARE YOU GONNA STOP HER!?" Sparx retorts with the same rage filled voice, though there is no real anger in his eyes, which he rolls at his brother before continuing. "Do you plan on searching every shadow in the Forbidden Forest on the way to the Well of Souls? Cause that might even take more time than _you_ got, Fat boy!"

Everyone in the room freezes with fear when Spyro releases an angry burst of pure Fury, as they've never truly seeing the purple dragon this irate. But Sparx has seen it, as he has drawn this type of reaction from his brother several times in life. However, after only a moment, the calm and gentle hero returns.

"What am I gonna do with her, Sparx?" he asks while lowering his head, his voice broken with fear and worry, knowing he will not be able to protect her every step of this journey. "She doesn't listen to me, even when I'm only trying to help keep her out of harms way."

"And here I was thinking Cynder's Spirit is what you loved most about her, Bro." Sparx replies with a wide grin on his face. He then looks over towards the door, as his eyes catch movement in the shadows, and again the sarcastic side of the yellow dragonfly returns. "I mean it has to be her pure drive and determination, because it can't be her looks that swayed you!"

Spyro's eyes snap back up to this brother, showing a different kind of anger now.

"Don't you insult Cynder like that, you ugly little yellow..."

"Spyro..."

Cynder's voice halts the purple dragon's rage and his attention is quickly back towards her. She calms him down with just her eyes, as he can see the tears have begun flowing strong.

"...I don't want you to be mad at me. So, if you really want me to stay here, in the palace, then I will stay."

A smile begins crossing Spyro's face, thankful that she is understanding of his reasoning, but it only lasts a moment.

"No, Spyro! Cynder will be coming with us."

Brazin's voice brings all eyes to him again, and this time it's not because of his skill. The young adult earth dragon takes his attention from the stone face before him, staring down the purple dragon with little fear of the anger he is showing him.

"Her head will need to be readily available if this decoy fails...to bargain for the children that is."

Spyro is completely stunned by Brazin's brazen point of view, and before the hero has an opportunity to speak in opposition, the powerful stone drake continues his reasoning.

"I'm sure you are strong enough to take on whatever moron, or morons, that decided to kidnap your little brother, if and when it becomes physical." Brazin pauses, looks back at the bust he has made of Cynder's face, then turns his attention to the real thing. "But if you don't have what they want to begin with, then your strength will mean absolutely nothing. And Blake and his little friend will die."

Spyro wants to blow his top in defiance to Cynder tagging along, but he cannot see any flaw in Brazin's logical point of view. However, another word the Earth dragon had said still sits in the pit of the purple dragon's stomach, as he was planning to go alone

"And what is this _us_ crap, Brazin!" Spyro replies, staring dead into the Earth dragon's solid brown eyes. "Do you really think I'm taking you with me too?"

"Yes! Cause I'm the only one who can keep an eye on Cynder while you do your thing." he replies in less than a second, looking over at the eight guardians before returning his eyes to Spyro.

"You know none of the Guardians can publicly defending her like I just did, or like I am willing to do, _if_ you allow me to help you."

Spyro sighs as Brazin, once again, makes a strong point with logic, not anger and rage. He knows the Guardians must keep the peace, but to publicly side with the Terror of the Sky could prove harmful for their relationship with their respective proteges.

"When can you be ready?" Spyro asks with only little hesitation, understanding how he could use a helping hand, and this time, one that's a bit stronger than a dragonfly's.

"WHOA! What do we need him for?" Sparx argues as Cynder returns to Spyro's side, quickly laying her wing over her hero's back. "We already have the Three Amigos back together."

The purple dragon finally smiles at his older brother, knowing the next line he uses will set him off.

"I was thinking, this time around, Cynder and I could use someone with a _good_ sense of humor on an adventure."

* * *

It took less than a second for every single shard of blue crystal to adhere to Blake's face, as it was the only part of his body exposed to the ancestral gem when it struck the ground and shattered. The room then lit up with power as the tiny dragon soaked in the knowledge that the crystals give.

Kooresh, Shadow and especially Shale are stunned by the amount of energy the little dragon puts out, as all the shackles, binding Blake to the ground, shatter with the sudden freezing cold temperature that surrounds him.

The three year old dragon levitates up on to his hind legs and his wings spread out wide, allowing for the deepest breath he can take.

"Time to hold on, sweetie..." the large dragon remarks, placing his second paw over the top of Shale to keep her from being blown from his palm. "...and maybe...you should light that fire now."

Blake suddenly explodes with power, sending a sphere of icy cold energy expanding out exponentially in all directions The room's temperature drops fifty degrees in a nanosecond, turning all the moisture in the large cave to ice, and leaving a sparkling glaze upon everything.

"BY THE ANCESTORS!" Shale screams, releasing her breath into a large ball that fills Kooresh's paws. He quickly turns them to stone, keeping his palms from scorching, as Shale's power is also stronger than he was expecting.

Shadow, desperately trying to escape the cold, slides uncontrollably on his hind paws so much that he is forced to run like his ancestors, on all fours.

"My fur's not thick enough for this! " he remarks, quickly making his way out of the roomstaring at his friend with anger as he leaves. "And it's not fair, that you got a hand warmer, Kooresh!"

The colossal dragon gives a laugh with a slight chatter in his teeth, but quickly the cold fades and the room returns to a somewhat normal temperature.

"Blake!" Shale yelps, watching the young two toned blue dragon crumble to the ground. She leaps from Kooresh's giant paw, sliding on the icy floor into her friend

"What the heck was that?" he replies, still unable to move for a moment, even though the shackles that held him lay in pieces under his body. The small ice dragon is quickly smothered to the ground again, as Shale practically slams atop of him with a big hug.

"Are you OK!?" she says while licking his face several times, and Blake does not struggle against the little dragon that annoys him so much. In fact, he moves his head around, allowing her access to every part of his face.

"I'm fine now..." He replies, using his paw to move her away, so Shale can see his eyes as he thanks her. "...and it's because of you,"

"Are you still cold?" she asks because of the lower temperature in the room, smothering him in her arms and wings once again.

"Not at all..." he returns, grasping Shale as she tries to back away, making sure he stays within her arms. "...I've never felt warmer."

Kooresh smiles wide at the pair of whelplings, whom already seem comfortable with each others affection. It has been some time since he has been apart of this type of interaction, as the large dragon has spent eons underground, alone.

However, to his credit, this Earth dragon is the main reason Gaul's army never made it through the catacombs under the city, where they could have swarmed Warfang without warning. Instead they were forced to approach from the sky, allowing hundreds of dragons the opportunity to flee.

But more importantly, it gave Ignitus the time to remove Spyro's egg from danger.

The colossal drake enjoys this moment, seeing how the actions he performed have helped keep his race thriving, however, as Shale turns to him with an angry face, he begins to wonder.

"Why'd you do this?"

The question, blunt and vague, stumps the big dragon for a moment, but he answers the best he can.

"He was suffering, all I did was relieve a normal..."

"NOT _THAT_!" She says with an attitude, looking over to the room's entrance at Shadow, whom has also been nothing but kind.

"Why did you kidnap us?"

Shale continues with a softer voice, begging for an answer to why they have taken them from their families.

"You are not the evil predators my mother and father have taught me to stay away from. And you don't seem to be interested in jewels or gold..." Shale looks at Blake, knowing exactly who his brother is, then returns her eyes to Kooresh, already knowing the answer. "...so why did you do this?"

Shadow reenters the room to stand by his big friend, as his emotions are suddenly tested by this little dragoness. Kooresh gives the black cheetah a grateful nod, then shows the small orange fire breather the same grateful grin.

"This is a _means_ to an _end_ , my dear."

"NO! What you mean, is that _we_ are the means...to _Cynder's_ end."

Blake finally opens his mouth, as he can hear the same anger and pain in the colossal dragon's voice that he has heard for the last week. From the balcony of his brother's home, he has heard the calls of mothers and sons, fathers and daughters, all of them with the same pain he can hear in Kooresh's voice now. All of them looking for anyone to blame, including one of the saviors of Avalar itself.

"You're using us to lure her here, so you can kill her."

However, Spyro's little brother is stunned, as the answer the large dragon gives is not what was expected.

"I do not want to _kill_ Cynder. But you're right about wanting to lure her and Spyro here." Kooresh replies, looking over at Shadow for support, which the black cat gives by gently patting his paw upon the large dragon's neck.

"I'm hoping _they_ will be the means...to _my_ end."

* * *

 **OK...who saw that coming...cause I didn't.**

 **As I said, a very trying month February has been, and it is influencing my thoughts. But I think I'm gonna like this option**


	18. Rise of a Guardian

**Hey everyone, and a Happy Easter to those who celebrate. I am celebrating a year without cigarettes, so I guess I have also been reborn. Here's hoping I can stay away from them.**

 **MCZ your cookies have helped, so I say thank you, and to Dragon uprising, Holy Cross, and Dragon Master for your reviews.**

* * *

Chapter 17 Rise of a Guardian

No matter how angry he was about her coming, Spyro realized that Cynder would have an opportunity to speak with one of the dragons she fears most, and possibly come to terms with some of her own inner demons. It is not how he envisioned this, but any chance for Cynder to come out of the shell she has placed herself in, since the war, would be a welcome sight to the purple dragon.

He has seen only a glimpse of her joyful spirit since Malefor's defeat, as both dragons were not expecting the horrific way Cynder was treated upon returning to Warfang. But just as the Hermit had predicted, many were not willing to forgive the acts of a mass murderer. In fact, hundreds had called for her head the moment they returned home, even having full knowledge she had just helped Spyro save the world.

They did not care that she was stolen from her birth place, brainwashed and tortured as a whelpling, then force to perform genocide against her own kind. They only cared that she was the instrument of their pain, and wanted justice for the unthinkable acts she had committed.

Cynder has practically shut her feelings down, showing none of the powerful emotions that made the battle against the Dark Master possible for the underdog pair. But now, watching her converse with a dragon that would not give her the time of day, Spyro decides it is for the best that she comes.

The purple dragon hangs back with his brother, Sparx, allowing a pleasant conversation to continue without his disruption, though he remains close enough to hear every word.

"Did you and Spyro ever encounter a Cave Troll on your journey thru the Catacombs?" Brazin asks with an almost enthusiastic tone, as he himself has never ventured into the ancient city beneath Warfang. He has wondered since childhood, but has never had the opportunity to ask the only two who have, as he has been hell bent on killing the black dragoness and her hero boyfriend.

"Well, I don't know if you would call them Cave Trolls, but Spyro and I had to deal with two giant monsters made of stone...both of them the size of a colossus."

Brazin shows even more interest, hearing the intricate details of their journey to defeat Malefor, as most citizen were only give the 'highlights'.

Spyro smiles seeing Cynder with a bounce in her step, walking side by side with a dragon whom almost killed her only two weeks earlier, joyful talking about the best days of her life. Which oddly came during a war.

"This is when I enjoy being in her company, Bro." Sparx remarks softly, after Cynder delivers a well placed joke, then laughs along with Brazin. The yellow dragonfly quickly recalling memories of the long battles, and the sense of humor Cynder would use to relax he and his brother before and after each fight.

"She always knew to what to say...and how to say it." he continues in a louder voice, allowing the black dragoness to hear one of the few compliments he's ever paid her.

Spyro nods his head, knowing exactly what his brother speaks of, as Cynder was instrumental in keeping the purple dragon in good spirits, especially after the lost of Ignitus. He smiles at the black dragon, whom slowly turns her head, looking back at the pair whom praise her for just being herself.

"It's one of the things I love most about her, Sparx..." he says, making her blush and turn her head back to face forward. She becomes even more confident in the moment, allowing her to walk with a bit of a swagger in her step, showing off another part that Spyro don't mind seeing.

"...then, of course, she's got that cute little butt!"

Cynder stops short, looking back at the purple dragon whom continues to stare at her backside while walking by.

Spyro nuzzles his nose under her jaw, closing her wide opened mouth before pecking the love of his life on the cheek. His tail taps the booty he has just claimed to be perfectly shaped, and his eyes quickly snap up to hers.

"And I will make sure no one ever hurts it..." Spyro then turns around, showing Brazin a very annoyed look. "...or touches it again."

As the purple dragon's eyes flash white, the Earth dragon realizes he may have over stepped his bounds earlier. However, being the stubborn, sarcastic dragon he is, Brazin simply smiles in Spyro's face.

"Good luck with that!" he retorts, then looks directly at Cynder's behind. He can feel the anger coming from Spyro, as the purple dragon's temperature rises as fast as his blood pressure. "Although _I_ have no real use for it anymore, I'm sure when Cynder shows off this wonderfully, intoxicating personalty, that no one but yourself knows about. Then even you will have a very hard time keeping that 'cute little butt' to yourself."

Cynder smiles with embarrassment, however, Spyro gets a bit angrier.

"What do you mean, _anymore_?" he barks, still wondering about the moment the two spent alone in the Guardian's Perch, and the idea Brazin had put in the jealous dragon's head about a kiss.

However, the stone drake quickly ends the charade.

"What I mean is...I don't want to _hurt_ her anymore, Spyro." he says bluntly, then shows the purple dragon a small white ribbon he keeps tucked under a scale by his heart. "And since I already have a cute little butt that I protect, I can promise you that I will not be looking or touching hers from this point on."

Brazin pauses, looks down at Cynder's butt once again, then returns his eyes back to Spyro.

"Okay...I won't touch it..." he says with a snarky tone "...but, I'm a guy...so it's impossible to stop looking."

Spyro, noticing who the small piece of ceremonial fabric in the Earth dragon's paw belongs to, grasps it from Brazin and holds it before his eyes.

"Hey! I know who this belongs to!" Spyro barks, as the brown drake yanks the ribbon back from him, placing back where it belongs. He then gives Brazin a very strong look. "And if you don't want me to tell Ember, you'll keep your wandering eyes to yourself."

"Like I said before, Spyro..." Brazin smiles, then gestures his paw for Cynder to go before him, returning to their walk towards the palace exit. He quickly locks his eyes on her backside again and taps the purple dragon with his wing. "...good luck with that."

Spyro rolls his eyes, then looks up to the right as his brother begins laughing.

"Hey! I really like this guy." the little dragonfly remarks sarcastically, then uses a line that always gets under his younger brother's scales. "It's a shame mom and dad didn't find _his_ egg floating down the river. Cause then I could have had a cool brother to grow up with."

Sparx looks down at Spyro, showing the one he really loves, as family, the truth without speaking. However, being Sparx, he uses his words to convey that point with his own personal charm.

"But then again, how else would I have had the chance to die nearly thousand times. While being attacked by a hundred foot tree, or chased by a two ton spider... if it wasn't for _you_ being my brother."

Spyro smirks, hearing the affection Sparx hides in his words, knowing how his brother cherishes the time he spent with him, while saving the world. But mostly the purple dragon knows it's the celebrity that came with their plight.

"And the fact you haven't paid for a single meal since returning has nothing to do with..."

Both brothers's attention are taken as yelling begins coming from the opening palace doors, and a crowd of haters that have come to give Cynder a familiar welcome.

"Why don't they just kill you and get those kids back!"

This is the first thing Spyro hears, however, it is also the last words in anger he hears towardsher, as Brazin is the next to speak.

"I'd like to see you try and take her head off, Flare!" He yells at the same red dragon that was vocal in the town square. He looks around at the other seven friends this fire breather brought, knowing they all have a personal vendetta against the Terror of the Sky.

Spyro runs as fast as he can to the palace door, hoping to stop a fight before it happens, however, Brazin seams hell bent on starting it.

"Seriously!" the Earth dragon continues with anger, staring dead at the young adult two toned red drake, gesturing a paw at the other seven teen and twenty something dragons. "If you tell your friends to hang back, and take her on, one on one, then we'll see who loses their head."

Cynder becomes frighten as the red dragon lets out a plume of fire in anger, then looks dead into her eyes.

"I would love the opportunity to get my family's vengeance!"

Spyro is quickly between them, andangered look in his eyes towards Brazin as he instigates further.

"Do you really think you can get that vengeance, Flare? Cause I think Cynder would make easy work of a third rate fire breather like yourself." he argues, then looks over at the group of friends, he himself, normally hangs around with.

"The only reason you talk to her in this fashion is because of them, as does everyone else who thinks this dragon is evil, but is unwilling to stand face to face with her mono a mono."

Brazin immediately walks up to the red dragon, who first cried for her head in the market square, as he knows him well.

"Are you willing to look her in the eye, _alone_ , and take that vengeance from her?" Brazin can see a bead of sweat form on his old friend's brow, and quickly his attention is back to Cynder.

"I ask that you allow this dragon his opportunity Ms. Cynder."

"I... ah..." Flare stammers, and Brazin snaps his eyes back to look upon the red dragon with shame.

"YOU ARE A COWARD!"

"EASY!" Spyro intervenes, grasping Brazin by his shoulder and backing him down. "No one is fighting!"

The larger Earth dragon shakes Spyro's paw from his body

"Oh yes they are Spyro. And Flare is going to understand what this dragoness is really about." he replies aloud, then moves closer to the purple dragon's ear and whispers his real intentions.

"Just follow my lead, he cannot fight to save his life and will be forced to talk his way out of it...I assure you."

In the blink of an eye, the purple dragon takes his cue from Brazin, understanding exactly what the Earth dragon is doing.

"Fine! If that's what it's gonna take, then so be it!" Spyro barks with anger, startling everyone in the area as he loses his cool, hearing the peace loving hero call for a fight. "Beat him senseless, Cynder... I will make sure it remains one on one."

The Shadow dragon is ready to blow her top, however, as Flare begins backing down, Cynder realizes how both Spyro and Brazin are playing the situation.

"I'm not going to fight her!" Flare whines, drawing razzes from his friends, hearing the red dragon trying to back pedal from a battle he has begged for.

"No! You are going to fight her..." Brazin remarks, grasping the lower part of Flare's neck, and pulling him face to face. "...or you will fight me...Understand!"

"Why are you doing this, Brazin?" Flare asks with fear in his voice, as the Earth dragon starts uncovering a secret he has kept for a decade, and his inability to fight. His voice becomes silent, making sure only his one time best friend can hear him.

"You know damn well I can't battle against her by myself. I would get slaughtered."

Knowing he could socially cripple the Fire dragon, by exposing him before his friends, Brazin continues his plan.

"Then it's settled... You and Cynder will face each other right here, right now." he says aloud, looking over at the group Flare came with. "And when he is done, who will be the next to teach Cynder a lesson?!"

All seven dragons fold their paws under themselves, making sure they don't show the slightest gesture that could be considered a challenge.

Brazin smirks, then returns his eyes to Flare, giving him a confident gaze.

"You're the only one with balls, so I will stand by your side." he says, loosening his stone grip upon a good friend, and proving he is still the dragon he's known for years.

"Come, my old friend, I wanna watch her beat you senseless." Brazin continues with his best sarcasm, then returns to the voice that Flare knows is solid as the stone he manipulates. "Then... I want to see the look I couldn't see on my own face."

Brazin, with a bit of effort, helps his Fire breathing friend walk, passing in between Spyro and Cynder on their way to the far side of the courtyard.

"What look is that, Brazin?" Flare asks, as the earth dragon stares into Cynder's green eyes. He pauses for a split second to show her a smile, then returns to his friend.

"Satisfaction, Flare...pure satisfaction."

Brazin escorts the dark red chested dragon to the other side of the palace's main courtyard, where he begins instructing him on how to attack Cynder. He ignites a fire within his heart with a reminder of why he is angry at her. Several on-lookers observe the fire spouted into the air, and they quickly rush over to see this impromptu fight many have been waiting to have themselves.

This draws more on-lookers as their excitement is conveyed with a few simple words.

"HEY! The Terror of the Sky is gonna get her butt kicked!"

Spyro actually chuckles to himself at the thought, knowing how easily Cynder could take down every single dragon in this courtyard if she wished, including himself. He looks around as all of Warfang, who heard that call, come rushing to the scene with a certain excitement.

"What am I supposed to do, Spyro?" Cynder asks with fear, as Flare begins charging himself up, then starts heading towards her. She turns to her hero, hoping he will intervene, but oddly Spyro stays put.

"Defend yourself, Baby! And if he tries to hurt you...then you hurt him." he returns, looking over at Brazin, whom simply smiles at this reply.

Spyro also notices the expression on Flare's face become grave, and his path to Cynder a bit more lit-footed. However, as the dark dragoness makes her own intentions known, Flare comes to a dead stop.

"But... I don't want to hurt him."

Cynder shows how upset she is by releasing a few tears and somberly explaining why she will not fight back against this dragon.

"I've hurt him enough already..." She says, looking into the eyes of a dragon she sees in one of her many nightmares. "...when I was ordered to attack his home."

Flare can see the pain and remorse written all over her face, and in that moment, standing before the one he believes is evil incarnate, the fire dragon starts understanding how wrong he just might be.

"Wait! You remember me?"

Cynder, now unable to look him in the eye, hangs her head down in shame.

"I didn't want to hurt you or your family that day," She says, shocking Flare to the core, hearing that Cynder not only remembers, but how incredibly heart-broken she is by her actions.

The dark dragoness raises her right paw, looking upon one of six silver bracelets Gaul shackled her with only a day after hatching, recalling how they took control of her actions from that moment on.

"I was forced to attack your home, because your father was strong and posed a great threat to my former masters."

She turns to the other dragons who came with Flare, knowing how she influenced all of their lives that day. And with the sudden overwhelming amount of guilt she starts feeling, Cynder loses the ability to stand.

"I hurt all of you that day... and I'm sorry. I couldn't stop what I was doing." she cries, recalling the past so vividly now, as no one is stopping her confession with threats or physical violence.

Spyro decides to intervene at this moment, taking Cynder in an embrace, protecting her from their stares. However, even he is stunned as several dragons in the courtyard begin dropping their angry scowls.

"Well, that's not what I was expecting..." a single voice remarks, and all eight dragons, including Flare, nod their heads up and down.

"..the question is...do we believe her?"

Spyro watches as this single green drake approaches, staring dead into his purple eyes. He gets face to face with the Hero of Avalar, then looks down at the one he's holding. Cynder looks up at him, showing the same childlike fear he had, when the Terror of the Sky attacked his home years earlier. And within a second of staring into her frightened green eyes, he realizes she may just be telling the truth.

"Are you really afraid of me?"

The dark dragon turns away, showing just how terrified she is, forcing another quickly asked question.

"Why?

Cynder hesitates for a moment, readying to hide within the emotional shell she always tucks herself into while in public, however, with Spyro holding her tightly, the dark dragoness finally finds the strength to answer.

"Because you deserve justice for what I did." Cynder replies in a very somber tone, griping Spyro tightly as she voices her greatest fear. "But I don't want to die for something I had no control of."

Mentally exhausted, the black dragon collapses in her boyfriend's arms.

"Please believe me! I didn't know what I was doing was wrong..." She continues, but Spyro ends her confession by wrapping his wings around her, helping Cynder hide from the pain of everyone's judgment.

"How could you know, Cynder?" Spyro whispers to her, then looks at the dragon standing before him. "How could anyone think the one raising them from birth could turn out to be the devil."

Spyro looks around at the growing crowd, now using an angered voice to speak on Cynder's behalf.

"How could you disrespect the one that protected you from Gual and his army, taught you to use your powers, made you feel invincible, then eventually... told you to kill, so he could finally be with you!"

Spyro can feel her talons digging into his sides, hugging him tightly for support, but mostly hoping he will stop talking. However, as everyone begins losing their angered expressions, the purple dragon continues with how he sees her past.

"Well, Malefor is gone now... and you all have Cynder to thank for that, because she turned against him at the moment when it mattered most." He barks, opening his wings and showing off the true hero of Avalar. Spyro hoists the dark dragon up in his arms, holding her proudly before the growing crowd of Cynder haters.

"She's the one that took the Dark Master down... Not me!" he continues, pulling her back against his chest, hugging her tightly.

Spyro knows she was the real reason they were able to defeat the larger purple dragon, as her love and power tipped the balance in their favor. He explains all this to Cynder with a strong gaze, then a kiss that nearly removes her lungs. A smile fills his face as she stops shuddering, and the light-hearted side of the purple dragon returns.

"All I did was pull the world back together!"

"And just how grateful have we been for _that_ , Spyro!?" Terrador's voice booms from the palace door's, turning everyone's eyes to the new Master Guardian, and the moment the ruler of Warfang sees he has their attention, he angrily answers his own rhetorical question.

"So grateful, we've denied our heroes the simple reward of peace and prosperity... But that all ends today!"

The ground rumbles as the large Earth Guardian makes his way down the steps of the palace and up to the one whom even he has been sullen towards. An entourage which includes the other seven guardians, Spyro's mother and brother as well as Sharon and Oswald, follow behind, all hanging their heads with shame.

"This young dragoness has done nothing to warrant the disrespectful way we have treated her, regardless of what we believed she did in her past!" The large green and orange chested dragon proclaims, looking around at everyone but her. "There is no way we could possibly understand the pain she feels, having full memory of those she was forced to hurt against her will. Then standing here before her accusers, day in and day out, unable to show remorse without being attacked by one or two...or ten."

He finally turns his eyes down to Cynder, and for the first time, Terrador speaks with no suspicion in his voice when addressing the former Terror of the Sky.

"We were wrong to have pushed you away, Cynder. Trying desperately to remain neutral for the sake of our reputations." He says with as much humility that a rock hard individual can muster. The Guardian master, and now head of the dragon race, shocks everyone in the courtyard, including Spyro, as he bows to Cynder.

"I hope you can forgive a group of stubborn old dragons for their limited vision."

Unable to say a word, Cynder's eyes speak volumes, showing a range of emotions that Terrador understands. He quickly rises and, with a very gentle paw, cups Cynder's jaw in his large palm.

"I promise, you will no longer be held accountable for what Malefor and Gual made you do." the large green dragon looks over at Spyro, and with a simple nod of his head, tells him everything will be fine from here on out.

He then turns towards the crowd of onlookers, all whom have some sort of grievance with the former Terror of the Sky...until this moment.

"FROM THIS DAY FORTH...IF ANYONE TAKES ACTIONS AGAINST CYNDER, THEY WILL BE COMMITING AN ACT OF AGGRESSION, AND WILL BE PUNISHED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF OUR LAWS!"

Terrador looks back to a specific Cheetah warrior, who's never more than ten yards from the ruler of Warfang.

"Make note in the official record, that on this day, Cynder has been absolved of any wrong doings against the dragon race. I wanted it posted on every lamppost in the city, and I want it done before the sun reaches mid-sky. "

The old cheetah, without question, writes down what was said, then nods to a younger version of himself, who takes off running.

Spyro is completely stunned, realizing the repercussions of Terrador's decree. He knows the guardians would never prosecute Cynder for her past, but they could never defend her publicly, like he just did. However, for the earth dragon it is a bit more difficult, and Spyro knows it

"What about Granite?" The purple dragon asks, still a tone of shock in his voice. "He is not gonna like the idea that his mentor, and best friend, will be defending the dragon he believes killed his baby sister."

Terrador lowers his head, and for a moment Spyro can see the same look the Earth Guardian shows when asked about his eventual replacement. However, today, the answer he gives is much different.

"If he cannot get past his own pain, then how will he ever be able to help ease the pain of those suffering around him." Terrador looks over at Skylar, whom has been influential in breaking the stone dragon's stubborn attitude towards Cynder, seeing how she has dealt with the one that killed the father of her children. He then turn his eyes back to Spyro, showing the resolve in his words.

"I cannot ask him to become a guardian, if he cannot find the strength and ability to guide his own path?" The Earth dragon suddenly turns towards Brazin, and with a simple sentence, takes his breath away.

"Besides, it appears other options have suddenly become available to me."

* * *

 **Brazin is going to realize how awesome the perks are for those willing to forgive. That's if he survives...oops, did I say that!**


	19. Time to go

**Only a few chapters left, but they should be good ones.**

 **Thank you for the kind reviews, I'm glad you guys are still enjoying**

* * *

Chapter 18 Time to go

An icy mist continues flowing from Blake's nose, as his body is once again made to cool itself down. However, this time, it is not a warm rock under his belly that keeps the youngster's cooling himself, but the warm dragoness laying under his right wing.

Kooresh, watching intently from the corner of the large room, can see the smile on the young dragon's face, as Shale grasp his body, pulling him even closer to stay warm.

"They make a cute little couple." Shadow whispers, making his presence known in the dark cave with only his voice. His green eyes sparkle in the limited light as he looks up to the old drake. "In fact, they kinda remind me of another cute _little_ couple I knew in my youth."

The large dragon smiles, recalling the day Shadow was born, as he and his family lived next to the colossal pair of dragons.

"Are you seriously calling Jade and myself... _little_?" he replies, raising an eyebrow at his friend for his somewhat sarcastic tone.

Kooresh opens his left wing to it fullest extension, which covers nearly half of the cave's footprint, then drops it down upon the black cheetah. He pulls it across the ground, dragging Shadow in to his side. The colossus grabs his best friend in one paw, then, with a single curled finger on her other paw, gently gives Shadow a noogie.

"Cause I think you are the _small_ one here, buddy!"

Shadow smiles as the large dragon manhandles him in such a gentle way, knowing in twenty years, he's never harmed a single hair on his body. However, with this feeling of compassion inside, the black cat does something he's never done .

"Are you sure you want to do this, Master?" he says with a somber tone, questioning Kooresh for the first time in twenty years.

The large dragon understanding the question without detail, answers his friend by releasing him and looking him dead in the eye.

"I have not been sure of anything since _that_ day, Shadow..." he says, then pauses as he remembers the worst day of his life. After a moment, his eyes refocus from the past, locking upon the eyes of the only one who knows how badly he is suffering inside.

"...but today, I have never been more sure of anything in my life."

The black cat lowers his head, as Kooresh has spoken of killing himself on several occasions, since losing his wife and child, but never cold he do the shameful act. It would be against his beliefs and would never be able to see his wife and child again.

He was actually thankful for a war, hoping that he could die in battle. However, when he had found out the objective of Gaul's army, and the ultimate release of Malefor, the colossal dragon could not just lay down and die.

"The world no longer needs me, Shadow..." he says, glancing over at the two whelplings and seeing a version of the dragon that now ensures Avalar's safety, as well as his only salvation. "...and Spyro is one of the few with the power to end what I cannot...if I anger him enough,"

"Shale... Are you hearing this?" Blake whispers under his wing and she gently kicks him. It barely shudders the tandem pair, but tells him to be quiet and listen without speaking, as they eves drop on the two voices they hear clearly in the silent cave.

Even with the eyes of a cat, Shadow doesn't notice the slight movement, neither does Kooresh, who's looking directly at them.

However, as he continues.

"I know it was wrong what I did...taking his baby brother..."

"HIS WHAT!" Blake barks, startling everyone in the room as he pops to his feet, staring angrily at the dragon a thousand times his size. Shale rolls her eyes as her childish friend reacts to this simple comment again, flying off the handle the moment someone refers to him as a baby.

However, she smiles as her friend opens his wings to fly, and gets only a few feet off the ground, or as high as he can jump. Knowing it would only enrage him further, picking on his inability to fly, and noticing the steam coming from Blake's ears already, Shale decides to keep the jokes to herself.

Blake, enraged that he still can't fly and that he is still being called a baby, stomps over to Kooresh and looks straight up at him. He gestures his paw for the large dragon to lower his head down, which he does, and, without a single word of warning, Blake slaps him across the face.

Kooresh doesn't feel the impact and Blake notices this.

"That was a warning!" he says with as much strength that he can pull from his terrified voice, making Shadow and Shale start laughing at the same time.

The large Earth dragon stares at him with shock, stunned that this little child had the gumption to strike him with such veracity.

"You don't need his big brother, Master..." the large black cat jokes, gesturing his paw at the tiny blue whelpling, whom suddenly drops into a defensive posture. Having witnessed his little tantrum in the Market Square, when Shale had picked on him, Shadow has first hand knowledge of this young dragon's pride-filled temper. "...I'm sure this little fella will do the job if you call him a baby again."

Kooresh scoops the raging whelpling in his palm, hoisting him up to his eye level, and getting a better looking at the anger that is still written all over Blake's face.

"But...he is only a baby!" he says, and is quickly sprayed with a thousand icicles.

Kooresh's laughter shakes the cave, as Blake's effort to hurt him is pointless against his stone hard scales.

"You are an impressive little dragon!" he grumbles with joy, keeping Blake held high in his palm. He then looks to the sky, a rather satisfied look in his eye. "If your brother has even half the power you posses...I can finally go home."

"You must live in the Skylands..." Shale's sarcastic voice calls from directly below, forcing Kooresh to look down at her and notice she is now walking towards him. Anger begins filling her expression, and her voice becomes a bit more annoyed as she continues. "...cause _you_ are _not_ a _God_!"

"Excuse me?" the large dragon asks but is quickly shut down again by the tiny fire breathing dragoness

"NO! There's no excuse for what you are doing!"

Shale opens her wings, flapping them down hard, and lifting herself up to the palm where Blake stands.

"You are still trying to kill yourself and that is something we cannot allow you to do." her voice is strict, yet caring, showing great concern for the large dragon that has told them why he has kidnapped them. However, he has yet to explain the reason for wanting to end his life.

"There is no need for you to die, and if I have to persuade you..." smoke and flame billow from her mouth as she continues, posturing like her father would before a battle. "...then so be it!"

"Calm down, Shale...his plan will never work." Blake adds, having a very good idea of Spyro's character, gaining that knowledge from conversation after conversation with his girlfriend, Cynder. "My brother would never kill someone that he understands to be kind and gentle..."

The young dragon looks up at Kooresh, showing of the same infectious smile that has yielded his brother, Spyro, nothing but good returns for more than fifteen years, as well as three years for himself.

"And you are the kindest and gentlest dragon I have ever met."

Kooresh suddenly becomes angry, enclosing his giant fingers around the two whelps in his paw, caging them within his palm under three blunt black talons.

"I AM NOT AS NICE AS YOU THINK!" he yells, scaring Blake to his core, making him cower in the large drake's paw.

Surprisingly, Shale is not as terrified by his outburst, standing up taller in his palm and squeezing her head through the gap in this makeshift cell.

"Yes you are!" she replies, matter of factually, staring down the massive dragon with no fear at all. It makes him flinch, dropping the rage in is eyes for a moment, allowing her to continue assaulting him with her charm. "Or you would have left us on the ground, bound in rock."

Shale lowers down into the large dragon's paw, grasps Blake by the arm, then rises back up, popping her head between the two talons she had squeezed through before. She pulls Blake beside her, forcing him to maneuver his head through the same gap.

Watching Shale manhandle the younger blue dragon makes Kooresh smile, and this fuels her even further, knowing what she and Blake said is true.

"Now! I know why you've been nice to _me_..." she says with a great amount of arrogance, which only improves Kooresh's attitude. "...but, you have also been nothing but helpful to him, and according to _you_ , he is the main reason for us being here. So, why are you acting so nicely to _him_?"

Shale pauses, dropping Blake, whom falls back to Kooresh's palm. He quickly retakes his position under his own power, giving the young orange dragoness a sour look, and making the colossal Earth bender smile again.

This also fuels the young girl and she quickly puts the verbal skills her big sister has helped hone at this very young age.

"You just may be a the most humble, courteous and kind-hearted dragon I ever met, but I'm guessing you're not that smart!"

Kooresh, Blake, and Shadow all do a double take as Shale drops the subtle insult, but no one interrupts the young dragoness when she makes sense about her observation.

"Having knowledge of how we lost so many citizens during this war, if you still want to die for no reason, then I guess I was wrong about you and I should add another trait to that long list of accolades."

All three wait for her dramatic pause, as even Kooresh wants to hear what this little dragoness thinks of him, however, he is not happy when she uses the word.

"Selfish!"

For the first time in his captivity, both dragons see the angry side of this large dragon as Kooresh suddenly blows his top.

"You think I'm selfish!?" he barks with rage, shaking the cave with just his voice, terrifying Blake to his core. However, Shale is not swayed by his reaction, pulling herself from between the blunt claws he has not clinched tighter with this outburst of anger, proving he is still not going to harm them.

"Well I don't think you're stupid!" she replies, opening her wings and flying up to the tip of his nose. She hovers there, showing the colossal dragon the anger she has in her eyes now.

"There are only two reasons someone kills themselves...stupidity or selfishness. So which one is it!?"

Kooresh stares dead into the eyes of this young dragon, startled by her poise as she shows no fear of repercussion. He actually takes a moment before answering, looking down at the one friend he has in the world for support, knowing this conversation will be difficult. However, suddenly seeing the one he lost in her gaze, and knowing how he could talk to her about anything, the old dragon answers the question.

"Selfishness." he says with depression, opening his palm to allow Shale her spot to land beside Blake.

The large dragon takes several deep breaths, hoping to keep his emotions in check, but it is pointless.

"I lost my wife and daughter during the Siege at Titan's Point and I..." the rock hard Earth dragon shows his soft side, pausing to wipe the tears from his eyes and collect himself. "...I just want to be able to hold them in my arms again."

Kooresh lowers his paw, turns it sideways, and dumps both youngsters to the ground. He gets up on his feet, then turns to walk away, but Shale will have none of that.

"HEY!" She barks, stopping the massive drake mid-turn. "Don't you think for a minute, that you're gonna give me that line of 'wanting to be with your family', then walk away without me telling you how _stupid_ that is!"

"I beg your pardon." he begins to say and once again Shale shuts him down.

"Not a chance!"

The orange dragon is back in his face in less than a second, hovering before his nose with fire in her eyes.

"You are wrong if you think that you will see your wife and daughter the minute you die, cause of what you are doing here."

"WHY!?" Kooresh barks back, cutting her off from talking. "I will not be killing myself, and since I am doing a service to this world by attacking the Terror of the Sky, I believe my death would be considered righteous!"

"HEY!" Blake suddenly opens his mouth, bringing their attention down to him. "You're not really gonna attack Cynder... Are you!?"

Without changing his expression, Kooresh answers the young dragon's question negatively, and this angers him. However, as the large dragon begins talking about Cynder's past, like he knows what he's talking about, Blake becomes more enraged than Shale. He opens his wings, flapping them several times to no avail, until finally finding the proper angle to gain height, then wildly bounding up twenty-five feet to the Earth dragon's nose.

He quickly grasps Kooresh by the right nostril, pulling himself up to look the colossal drake eye to eye

"I won't let you do that!" he says adamantly, staring into the large opening Kooresh uses to draw breath. "Even if I have to fight dirty...like a dragonfly."

The massive sized Earth dragon stares at Blake with complete uncertainty. He then looks at Shale, whom has a smile appear on her face, as she knows the tactic her little boyfriend speaks of.

"What is he talking about?" he asks, making Shale grin wider, as she's been witness to this type of attack, which has no real defense.

"He's gonna burrow into your nose... until you break."

The staring contest begins from that moment, as Kooresh realizes the youngster can fit into his large nostril. And even thought it would be quite a snug fit, he knows Blake would be gone before he could get his paw up to stop him.

"You wouldn't dare do that after everything I've done for you...would you? _Buddy_!"

Blake just smiles and reaches into the large dragon's nose. He grabs a single hair, yanking it painfully from Kooresh's right nostril.

"You took me from my brother...who is now probably blaming himself and begging forgiveness from my mom." he says, keeping his focus firmly on the large pair of eyes before him, showing the resolve within his own.

Blake glances down at the nostril before him again, finding another long hair he can yank, grasping it with his little paw.

"And now you're telling me you want to kill my best friend...just so you can anger my other brother enough to kill you?" He puts tension on the hair he has in his paw, bringing a tear to Kooresh's eye with this awkward twinge of pain.

"Well that's not a good reason...cause I know my history," he continues, spewing Ice from his mouth as he talks, showing how angry he is. "The Siege of Titan's Point happened twenty one years ago...and Cynder is only sixteen. So why are you mad at _her_ if she didn't kill your family?"

Kooresh's eyes show great pain, much more than the simple discomfort of a pulled hair, making Blake quickly release his hold. He climbs up onto the bridge of Kooresh's nose, ending the siege he had on the large dragon.

"I'm sorry..." he says, a very humbled tone in his voice, watching Kooresh become more upset as he recalls the past. "...I didn't mean to say it like _that_."

The large dragon smiles as Blake submits, giving in to a simple look of anguish, though the youngster cannot tell from where he stands. Kooresh picks him off the tip of his nose with a gentle paw, lowering the tiny blue whelpling to the ground so he doesn't have to try flying again.

Shale lands beside her little friend as the large Earth dragon lowers back on to his stomach. He gazes down at both, looking through them and into his past, envisioning the young whelpling that had him wrapped around her paw.

"I think you would have liked my daughter, Faith, she had as much spirit and spunk as you both." he says somberly, seeing a vision of his pride and joy flashing through his mind. Kooresh begins crying softly, but still continues talking about the one that had softened a stone dragon.

"It was her spirit that made her special to me...to everyone." He says, then smiles seeing both Blake and Shale sitting attentively, as she would if anyone were talking to her. "But, it was her spunk that ultimately saved the lives of forty nine dragons."

Kooresh takes in a deep breath, helping to quell the shaking he feels inside, as this sensation always follows when he thinks of the fight she waged against Gaul's army, allowing more than half the population of Titan's Point to escape.

"If it wasn't for my daughter, history may have been referred to that day as the _Slaughter_ at Titan's Point." he says, recalling the one dragon in his life he has not stopping thinking of since losing her.

"I wasn't there to witness the battle, but I was told my daughter bravely assaulted the Ape army, after her mother was killed. _Alone_ , she kept them at bay until the remaining inhabitants could get away from the village." He says, a sense of pride now intertwined with his pain.

"Faith took down nearly a hundred of these vicious apes, until their leader, Gaul, struck her with some sort of evil energy blast, that he unleashed from his swords." he continues, his voice now crumbling with the knowledge that his daughter could have survived if she ran at that moment. He looks down at his friend Shadow, who was only a young child, living in the small village at the time, and is alive because of her actions.

"But that didn't stop my daughter from giving those citizens another five _full_ minutes to get away." A smug grin suddenly crosses Kooresh's muzzle, knowing at that moment, his daughter left a permanent impression on history, and Gaul's face. "And leaving that bastard as a Cyclops"

Kooresh lowers his head as reality sets in, knowing that his daughter's brave act of defiance against Gaul, was also her last. Shale and Blake gently grasps the giant's paw, taking his right and middle digits in their tiny palms for support. It helps compose the large dragon enough to lift his head, where he makes eye contact with the souls of both these young whelplings.

He gets additional help from his good friend, whom places a black paw upon the large dragon's flank.

"Are you Okay, Master?" Shadow asks with concern, watching the one he has served since his daughter's sacrifice, succumb to the feelings of depression that drove him underground for so long.

"Do you want me to take the children into the other room and allow you a moment of peace before you go?"

Kooresh, with his eyes locked upon the young girl that is trying to comfort him, and the young boy whom still seams upset about bringing on these feelings, suddenly has an epiphany.

"That won't be necessary, my friend...I am at peace." he says, startling the black cat and both young dragons.

Kooresh turns his paw over, showing his palm to both whelplings, whom quickly retake their place in his paw. He raises them back up to his face, showing off a new look of hope in his eyes.

"Will you please forgive a stubborn old dragon for taking you from your families." he says with a more pleasant sounding tone in his voice, bringing a smile to Blake's face and wiggle to his little tail. However, Shale shows off a bit of a frown, and continues using her talents to raise the big dragon further from his depression.

"Well...I'm not the one you need to ask forgiveness from..." she remarks, then shows off her charismatic smile and charm. "...but if _you_ take us back to Warfang, I'm sure I can convince my mom and dad that you're a friend, and that you saved us from this ugly black cat."

"HEY!" Shadow grips, yet Kooresh laughs at the young girl, whom shows more of that spirit which reminds him of a dragoness he once had the privilege of raising.

"I would be honored to escort you home, young lady. It has been far too long since my eyes have beheld Warfang's beauty." he says, shocking Shadow to his core, as the large dragon has not stepped out of the catacombs in about twenty years.

"Master..."

"I am not your Master, Shadow..." Kooresh cuts off his long time life servant, then shows him a grateful smile. "...you had fulfilled a debt that I never asked you to repay, long ago... However, I will ask of one more favor, friend."

The large cat, roughly a head and shoulders taller than a average Cheetah warrior, bows in respect to his former Master, whom he has never felt beneath or belittled by in anyway, except size of course.

"Anything."

"I believe Spyro will have left the city for the Well of Souls by now." the large dragon remarks, knowing mid day has come and gone, and that his request for Cynder's head will bring the purple dragon two sweet. "Please intercept him before he gets too far into the Forbidden Forest. I would hate for something to happen to him because of my actions here today."

"Yes Mast..." Shadow stops himself from using the name he has called Kooresh for more than two decades, and shows the large dragon a smile "...I mean, I will, my friend."

Without another word, the large black cat is out of the room at full speed and into the Catacombs. Utilizing the gifts that the Ancestors gave him and his kind, Shadow bounds through the enormous confines of the underground city and into the forest, making his way toward the Well of Souls faster than any dragon can fly.

* * *

Meanwhile, just outside the main gate of Warfang, a small entourage has begun a journey into the Forbidden Forest.

"You guys can head back to the city now..." Spyro demands, looking directly at his little brother Cyrus as he speaks. His eyes move up towards his mother, whom walks beside him. "...we don't need anyone else in this family in harms way, so please."

Spyro turns his head the other way, gazing into the green eyes he happily wakes up to every morning.

"It's bad enough I have to take _this one_ with me on another journey, and have to watch out for her well-being." he says with sarcasm, making Cynder roll her eyes at him. However, his voice becomes serious as he returns his attention to his biological mother. So if you don't mind...please take Cyrus home."

The whole group stops, as the young Ice dragon holds his walk.

"I've been watching him my whole life, Spyro...NOT YOU!" he suddenly barks, turning angry the moment he is told to stop following.

"He has never known a father, except me!" Cyrus holds his argument, as he has never lashed out like this in front his mother, however, as he feels responsible, Cyrus continues his remarks. "And I don't care who you are, or how strong you are, he is more my son than my brother, so you will not stop me from coming to help."

Skylar steps between the child she knows, and the one she doesn't, favoring neither.

"This is not how my boys should be working together." she says, stopping the staring contest immediately as Spyro understands his mother's order.

"I can't keep adding more dragons to the ones I have to protect already, Mom!" he complains, pointing at a group of half a dozen dragons, two Cheetah Warriors, one elder Manweresmall female, and an obnoxious dragonfly.

"Oh sure, like we need _you_ to walk through a forest, Spyro." Brazin argues sarcastically, nudging Terrador with his wing. "He still thinks we didn't wage a war against the Dark Master for three years while he was frozen in crystal!"

Spyro just stares at Brazin for a second, whom strugles to keep his sarcastic grin at bay, then returns his attention to his younger brother.

"I care for you, Cy." he says softly, making sure only he and his mom can hear, knowing Brazin would only get more sarcastic if he heard Spyro's emotional words. "You're my brother, and I don't want you to get hurt."

Cyrus points at the small dragonfly by the hero's right horn.

"And what about him?"

Spyro smiles, after looking up at the yellow dragonfly whose arms are crossed, annoyed to even be questioned why he is there.

"I'm hoping he has an accident this time. It would be easier to explain to my mom." he replys with a very sarcastic tone, getting a very dirty look from Sparx.

Cyrus chuckles, as even after a week, he has had his fill of the chatty insect. However, he composes himself, making a case to be in his brother's group.

"I know you are trying to keep me safe, but I have to do this...for Blake." he looks up at his big brother, showing the purple dragon the same eyes he uses to sway his mother. "Please, Spyro...they took him right out from under my nose."

The purple dragon pauses, then looks at Skylar and asks a question without words. She answers it with just a nod, and Spyro takes a deep cleansing breath.

"You will stay no more than ten yards from my side at all times..." his eyes flash white as Cyrus begins showing a joyful reaction.

"...IS THAT UNDERSTOOD!?"

This forceful voice is enough to get Cyrus to stop wagging his tail, but it's not enough to crush his overwhelming excitement to be included in this search.

"Thank you, Spyro...I promise I will not let you or Mom down again."

Spyro looks over at his biological mother, whom shakes her head hearing Cyrus blame himself for the kidnapping once more.

"You have yet to disappointment me, Cyrus." he says, grasping the younger dragon by the shoulder, showing him how strong he is by pushing against his stance. He doesn't move an inch, allowing Spyro to compliment him further.

"And you are much stronger than you think."

* * *

 **Kooresh is bringing the kids back, just as Spyro heads out to get them...how badly can this go wrong?**

 **Wait and see.**

 **Everyone likes Feedback, including myself...but you know that already**


	20. Really Mature

**Hey folks, no I haven't forgotten you...I have been busy. I wanna do a chapter a week, really I do, but some times life says NO.**

 **I say thank you to Dragon Uprising, MCZ, HolyCross9, DragonMaster000 for reviewing again. And to Folwod and Gameguy95 for adding a new voice of support. The more the merrier.**

* * *

Chapter 19 Really Mature

For nearly a minute, Hunter's right eye has been focused down the shaft of his arrow, drawn back upon the compound bow held perfectly still in his left hand.

Waiting for the movement he saw to reoccur, so he can unleash hell, the poised warrior has yet to blink. His experienced vision notices every leaf that flutters from the wind's touch, dismissing them one by one for his target, but using them to judge the angle in which he will need to release his shot.

"What is it?" is silently asked by his friend and mentor, Meadow, whom also has his bow held firmly in his left hand. An arrow drawn back and ready to fire, but not aimed at any specific target.

"I saw something moving in that tree..." the Cheetah Warrior replies, not taking his eyes from this phantom target. He holds position for another few seconds before finally lowering his bow.

"...but I don't see it any longer."

"It was probably just a Swamp Viper, you overly jumpy cat! So could we getta move on here!?" A voice calls out from behind, as the group trailing the two Cheetah Warriors has been waiting to move for the past minute as well.

"This place smells of poo, and I'd like to find us a drier spot to make camp, cuz we'll be losing light in the next hour or two, and I sure as hell ain't spending my night burrowed in this nasty mud!"

"CAMP!?" Sparx cries out, as the self proclaimed leader of this expedition lays out her plans for the group, without consulting the real leader, him.

"We are not staying in the Putrid Swamp, La Rue!" he barks at the Manweresmall female, whose following a scented trail laid down earlier today by the kidnapper she witnessed taking two children from the market.

Sparx leaves his brother's right horn, buzzing over to the small mole-like creature to begin his argument, leaving the purple dragon a moment alone with Cynder and Brazin.

"How did you put up with that growing up?" the stone dragon asks, watching as Sparx gets into a verbal altercation with the elder Manweresmall, again. "I have no idea where you got this well-mannered temperament, Spyro, because I would've gone nuts and killed him years ago."

The purple dragon laughs, along with Cynder, who has been asking this question herself. Though, having first hand knowledge of why Spyro hasn't, and knowing she would also defend the little dragonfly with her life, Cynder is the one who answers.

"He is very obnoxious, but he has the heart of a real dragon, believe me, I've seen it..."

"I DON'T CARE!" Sparx yells out behind her, startling the group as his voice booms louder than the palace's cathedral bell. "I'm not spending a night in the swamp, you dumb ugly b..."

"You may have to look real hard to find it." Cynder cuts in, talking over the arguing pair while rolling her eyes.

Spyro and Brazin both laugh, however, Terrador, Oswald and Cyrus whom have been bringing up the rear, are not smiling at all.

"SPARX!" The large Earth dragon grumbles, stifling the little insect's rant with one syllable.

"If you have such an issue with where we are camping, why don't you go scout a place that's suitable to your needs?"

The little dragonfly, unable to argue back with such wisdom, simply looks down at La Rue.

"Where's a good place around here to camp?" he asks bluntly, making the Manweresmall elder roll her eyes.

"How did Spyro _not_ kill you while growing up!?" she asks, making Brazin and Cynder laugh harder.

After not getting an answer, the yellow dragonfly comes up with his own plan, and takes to the sky. Soaring up over the canopy of dense trees, Sparx looks over the horizon, searching for a more suitable place to rest his body.

"Hey! I see the perfect spot..." he barks out, pointing to the north as his eyes behold the very top of the palace, and the best place to stay the night. "...it's about ten or twelve miles in that direction!"

Terrador rolls his eyes now, for as ruler of Warfang, he knows exactly which direction and how far away his city is.

"If you wish to head back home, I would start flying now, Sparx." The large Earth dragon yells up into the air, forcing the little dragon fly to continue scouting the area for an actual place to camp. Terrador then looks down at his brother, wondering so much about the answer to La Rue's question, that he even asks himself.

"How _did_ you not kill him growing up?"

Spyro just shakes his head then laughs to himself recalling all the instances when he had that same idea, but would never. He smiles at the larger dragon giving the same reason he has for almost sixteen years.

"My mom and dad would have been mad if I got blood on the carpet."

After a good round of laughter, the group is silenced by an excited yelp from above.

"HEY I FOUND A CLEARING TO THE WEST!" Sparx yells, pointing in the direction La Rue has hinted going toward already.

"See, he's useful from time to time." Cynder remarks, just as Sparx gets close enough to hear her.

"What do you mean from time to time!?" The little insect gets right in the smirking black dragoness' face, trying his damn hardest to look intimidating. It doesn't work, and this forces him to get a little darker with his tactics to anger her.

"Meh... Maybe we should have just cut your real head off!"

Spyro grasps his brother in his paw, pulls him to his face, and shows him a very annoyed glare. His angered voice is amplified by how fast the black dragon's smile has left her face.

"There are no carpets out here, Sparx...so I will spill your blood today if you keep it up."

"Right!"

Sparx quickly stops acting like a fool, allowing his brother to release him. He hovers back to his normal spot by Spyro's right horn, pointing towards the trail La Rue had already put them on.

"About a mile down this path, we'll come across a large clearing of, what looks like, dry land."

"Yes! The Rock of No Hope!" La Rue remarks, matter of factually, knowing the piece of land that juts up from the mud was only a short distance from where they stand. "It's the center point of the swamp, and a place we Manweresmalls never want to find ourselves alone."

"Why's that?" Cyrus asks, as he knows very little of the area.

The old Manweresmall chuckles, than takes a deep breath.

"It smells like crap here, boy, and that rock is the source of the smell, as it is laced with sulfur. And since my nose is ten thousand times stronger than yours, which allows me to smell my surrounding..." The old mole-like female walks over to Spyro and his group and begins stuffing cotton up her nose. "..it means I am blind now and need to be carried, so for a Manweresmall like me, that rock spells certain death if I were alone."

"Wait a minute!" Sparx grumbles, as his younger brother scoops the senior citizen in his paw, maneuvering her to his side so she may ride upon his back. "If you can't smell anything now... How in the wild world of sports can you track the jerk who took my brother's brother?"

La Rue, still with the cotton crammed up her nose, walks over to Sparx and gives a very pronounced sniff.

"Even though you've chewed on several sprigs of Mint, I can still smell the truffles on your breath. You know, the ones you told your brother you didn't bring with you." She remarks, getting Spyro's eyes to open wide as his older brother lied about bringing some. However, before he can voice his anger, the Manweresmall female decides to back the bus up and run Sparx over again.

"As well as Brazin's vintage Avalarian Ale."

"WHAT!?" the Earth dragon barks, quickly rifling through the satchel he has Cynder's stone head in, and finding the bottle that is now a little less full. His eyes lock upon the small dragonfly, voicing his anger without speaking.

"LA RUE!? That's not cool! Especially since you were the one who took the bottle." the yellow dragonfly returns, pushing the blame upon the old mole-like creature. But his next line brings everybody's eyes to her.

"And you had _two_ drinks with your portion of the truffles I gave you."

She smiles, knowing everyone is looking at her, and simply grasps a good hunk of Spyro's back as the group starts moving down the path again.

"I'm just a frail little old lady, Sparx. I don't know what I'm doing anymore" she says, putting on a shaky voice to accentuate her age. However, her normal sarcastic tone returns as she continues. "So I can pretty much do what I want and get away with it."

The yellow dragonfly just stares at her with anger, more so as Brazin shrugs and turns his eyes back to him.

"We are going to have words if you touch my stuff again, Sparx!"

"WAIT A MINUTE! _She's_ the one that took the bottle! "

The earth dragon begins walking, as Hunter and Meadow move down the trail at a quicker pace, now having a destination to work toward.

"I respect my Elders...so I can't get mad at La Rue for having a drink...or two. But you," he turns about, making eye contact with Sparx. "I'll crack that little head of yours open if you disrespect my things again."

Sparx's eyes focus hard upon the smiling Manweresmall, sitting on his brother's back, as she was a major influence in this thievery.

"I'm gonna get you back for this, La Rue." he says, making her smile wider.

"You can try little fella." she replies with a very sarcastic tone, putting a smile on Sparx's face as he knows this means the game is on. She takes another pronounced sniff with her cotton filled nostrils, then grins. "But I can smell you coming from a mile away with that skunky cologne you wear."

The yellow dragonfly becomes enraged inside, however he holds it in having nothing funny to say back, and knowing it would only incite her to slam him again.

As he would if she got angry at him, which he has, on several occasions.

La Rue's shop sits only two carts down from where his mother and father set up their trade post, and though they have known each other for only a few weeks, the two have made a friendship that is as strong as the bond he has with his all of his biological brothers.

However, even as cagy as Sparx is, he knows La Rue has the upper hand in their war of practical jokes and banter, as her ability to sniff out an ambush is legendary. But this time, with her nose only working at only a fraction of its power, he may have a chance of getting back at her tonight.

For the most part, the conversations remained light hearted, regardless of how tense everyone was, as Sparx's nonsense was able to keep everyone's focus from the task at hand, like it did for Cynder and Spyro on their first journey.

The remaining trip to the interior part of the Swamp went much faster because of this, or maybe, it was the torrid pace Hunter and Meadow were able to set without waiting on La Rue's direction.

Having a destination in hand, and with knowledge of the Rock of No Hope, both Cheetah warriors bound down the trail, making sure the path is clear for the party that follows. The two cats quickly scout the massive yellow slab of rock, which smells of rotten eggs and worse. However, it is the perfect base camp for an assault on the Well of Soul, which now sit just over the horizon.

The pair of felines finish their jobs in no time, allowing the large party to relax with a feeling of safety, though their noses are not happy with the choice.

"Wow! It is pretty ripe here." Terrador remarks, as even he is taken by the pungent odor of sulfur.

"Yeah I know... Who farted?" La Rue asks almost sarcastically, turning her squinted eyes towards Brazin and lowering a pair of goggles down to focus what little vision she has. The earth dragon is startled for a second, then blushes hard, as he never thought anyone would be able to tell.

"Wow! You could smell that? Over this!? With those things up your nose!?"

La Rue smirks at the green dragon, then turns to Sparx, keeping the same grin.

"Yes... I can." she remarks with arrogance, making Sparx roll his eyes, knowing he will not have an easy job of messing around with his friend, as her sense of smell is better than he could have imagined.

"So why is it difficult for a Manweresmall to see, if you can still smell your surroundings?" Cyrus asks, as he is a bit confused by La Rue's statement from before.

"I can still smell other scents... that's true." La Rue adds more cotton to her nostrils, as the pungent odor continues increasing. "But I won't be able to get this one particular scent out of my nose, and it would force me to wander around in circles thinking I'm still close to this rock."

La Rue lowers her head for a moment, recalling several instances when a tracker made it into the Putrid Swamp, but never returned.

"This place is not suitable for any manor of beast..." she says, jumping from Spyro's back to walk upon the coarse yellow stone finding a small patch of soft sand to burrow into. "...only snakes and idiots are found out here."

La Rue pauses, looks around at the group, then smiles.

"Well, Good night _Idiots_ , I will see you all in the morning."

The old Manweresmall burrows into the ground, disappearing before anyone could respond, though she does hear the sounds of laughter while digging.

The remaining group circles around a fire that Oswald creates, relaxing for the evening and readying their plans. However, not craving the heat that everyone else is, Cyrus decides to find a place of his own in a cooler area. It is not long before he is noticed walking away from the group, getting the attention of big brother.

"What are you doing?" Spyro asks, as the blue dragon sits down on a flat section of the rock that doesn't seem to receive any sunlight.

"I don't feel like melting, dude...so I'll just stay over here" He replies sarcastically, however, as Spyro rolls his eyes, he answers with a normal voice. "I can hear everything you guys say, but I just wanna be alone for a few minutes...if that's okay?"

The purple dragon doesn't answer with words, but his actions show he is not _okay_ with this. He whispers a few words that he cannot hear and with a simple nod of his head, Cynder is up off her feet and padding over to his little brother.

She says nothing as well, until laying down beside the younger two-toned blue-colored version of Spyro, and being provoked into conversatoin.

"So, my big brother sent you over here to see what's on my mind...didn't he?"

Cynder acts surprised to be asked such a question, then quickly makes up a clever cover for her actions. "No, you were right...it's hot over there." says the Shadow dragoness as she rests her frame upon the same cool slab of rock Cyrus sits. Cynder looks over at Spyro and smiles before blocking him out with a small burst of black mist from her mouth. The Shadow magic envelops both Cyrus and herself, cooling their core temperatures, and putting a smile on the young dragon's face.

"Now I know why my brother likes you so much." he says and Cynder smiles wider. She turns her head towards the group circling the fire, laughing as her love begins making fun of Volteer. However, as she turns back to Cyrus and speaks of her love for his brother, the blue dragon holds up a paw.

"I didn't mean him."

Cynder stops talking, gazing at Cyrus with a bit of an uneasy look, as the blue dragon has voiced how dissatisfied he is with his little brother sleeping under her wing.

"I'm sorry about how I acted towards you last week, but I was just jealous." he confesses, lifting up his wing, and placing it on Cynder's back. "Blake had never left my side in the middle of the night for anyone else...not even to lay by his mom."

Cynder pauses with a sudden feeling of guilt, as the young dragon's first visit under her wing was the hardest night she ever experienced, but also one of the most satisfying.

"I was surprised myself." she returns, recalling the first moment Blake walked out onto the terrace where she was sleeping. "He had no fear in his eyes when he walked up to me, but I could tell he was afraid."

"Yeah, he's a lot like my dad was, and that brings up a question I've wanted to ask you since we got to Warfang" Cyrus remarks with a bit of a grin, then tightens his wing around the black dragoness, as she tries moving out from under his cover.

"I know this is not what you want to talk about, but I do... so please, just stay here and let me talk about it." Cyrus loosens his hold on her, allowing Cynder to make the choice of leaving. Nerves move the Shadow dragoness, but only an inch or two, as the same gut wrenching feeling she had a week ago fills her stomach, when Blake asked about his father.

"I'm sor.."

Cyrus' paw is up to her mouth, holding the word he never wants to hear from Cynder again.

"I know your sorry, but that is not what I want to talk about." He says, taking a deep cleansing breath before asking the question.

"What I want to know is... what is my brother really like?"

Cyrus' eyes focus on Spyro the moment he speaks, then return back to her, allowing Cynder to realize he is actually asking about her favorite subject. However, the question is a bit vague to her.

"What do you mean by that?" she replies with a odd expression, as Cyrus has lived under Spyro's roof for over a week, and have had many peaceful conversations.

"Blake has a strong bond with Spyro already, and it's because he can talk to him like he's a three year old." Cyrus looks back to the purple dragon, whom continues making the group around the fire laugh with his impression of Volteer. He then lowers his head, as this jovial side is all he sees from his big brother.

"But he also talks to me like I'm a whelpling, and I want to hit him for that."

Cyrus holds back a majority of his emotions, like his father would. Cynder picks up on this quickly, as Spyro acts the same way.

"I want him to talk to me about his problems..." he continues, as the fatherly side of this young dragon has been provoked at a young age, having to care for a mother and baby brother from the age of nine. "...but he never talks about the real issues that bother him, and that makes me wanna punch him in the face.

"He doesn't want to upset you, Cyrus, like I'm sure you don't ever want to upset your little brother." she replies, now using her wing to cover him.

She looks over at Spyro, whom has never actually taken his attention from the pair, even while joking around with the others. The purple dragon goes to stand up, but her paw rises faster than him, holding Spyro where he lays.

"Look at him." she continues almost laughing to herself, as the purple dragon struggles to remain calm, restlessly anxious to get up and be with the ones he loves. "His mind is racing a hundred miles an hour, but going in all different directions, wondering what we are talking about."

Cynder smiles as Spyro keeps trying to act interested in the conversations around him, but begins failing badly.

"He never wants to upset anyone, Cyrus..." she says, then hunches her shoulders as a depressing thought quickly enters her mind. She looks over at the one she is talking to, and like a week ago when she released her emotions to Blake, Cynder repeats the sad truth to another member of Spyro's family. "...and because of me he cannot fulfill that desire."

Cyrus balks as Cynder's attitude suddenly turns sour. His eyes are quickly up to a now concerned looking Spyro, whom again starts rising to his feet. However, with a gesture of his younger brother's paw, the purple dragon is back on his stomach, though his attention is now noticeably focused away from the group.

"What do you mean by that?"

The black dragoness, hearing the pure concern in Cyrus' voice, and recalling the same intense conversation she had with a younger version of him, decides to answer the same way

"I'm taking all the joy from his life." she replies with only a fraction of the spirit she normally has in her voice. Cynder's tear filled green eyes look up from the ground, focusing strong upon the lavender blues of Spyro's brother. "He is still being forced to fight, and this time...it is not for a worthy cause."

"Wow, Cynder. I thought you were smarter than that."

His answer stuns her completely, as it is almost the same thing Blake had said a week earlier. However, instead of being told exactly why by a three year old, a more mature dragon lays down the same truth.

" _You..._ are his joy." he says with a smile, relaxing both Cynder and Spyro as this young dragon shows his fatherly side with a calm and confident demeanor.

"Look at him..." Cyrus continues, waiting for her eyes to lock upon her purple hero, before gesturing his paw for Spyro to come. There is no hesitation between the young dragon's movements and his big brother leaping to his feet. "...nothing brings him more joy than being in your presence."

"Is everything okay over here?" Spyro asks half way, easing his pace as both dragons respond with a nod and a smile.

"We're fine, Bro" Cyrus replies nonchalantly, then gestures his head towards Cynder. "I was just explaining to this one, why she should stop worrying about how everyone feels...and begin living her life, with _joy_."

The young dragon stands up as Spyro sits beside Cynder, drawing a look from his big brother.

"Where are you going?" the purple dragon asks, almost annoyed that Cyrus is leaving, as he wants to talk.

"I gotta go to the bathroom...do you think I can manage that on my own, or do you need to be ten yards away." he replies very sarcastically, then looks back at his big brother, showing a concerned pair of eyes. "And try not to _heat_ up that rock while I'm gone, Loverboy."

Cynder blushes but Spyro gives his brother a nasty look as the two toned blue dragon walks off to find a secluded spot.

"I swear he acts like a child all the time." he says and is quickly slapped upon his backside by the flat end of Cynder's tail blade.

"He is a lot more mature than you think, Spyro." She says matter of factually, also watching as the blue dragon steps gingerly off the large yellow slab of stone and into the swamp.

"Not only has he helped your mom raise a smart, strong three year old boy," Cynder reaches down, grasping the paw of the one she loves, raising it up to her heart. "But he knows a great deal about the joys of life."

* * *

 **Just a fun little filler chapter, hope you liked it.**

 **Reviews = Joy**


	21. She's got a way

**If you follow me, you can see that I posted a chapter on my song story 'This Broken Soul'. While I was doing that another song came on the radio that I used to listen to, and it fit this story...so I made a chapter of it.**

 **My normal thanks to those of you who took the time to say things and stuff and words. I give you all great big smiley faces and a gold stars. Holycross9, MCZ, Gameguy95, Dragon-Uprising, Folwood, DragonMaster000, and my reviewer, Meowstic Luvva (whom seems to be shocked at my words) I thank you for inspiring me.**

 **A special thank you to 4Dragons who helped inspire me for this chapter...I hope you like it**

* * *

Chapter 20 She's Got A Way

With another full goblet of his personal stock of Avalarian Ale, swashing around in his now swaying paw, Brazin takes another sip. His blurred vision, working hard to keep the purple dragon in the center of his view, now focuses upon Cynder, whom lays beside her love, sleeping peacefully.

"We are getting to be friends here, aren't we Spyro? Cause I need to know somethin'... Itz important."

His actions tell the tale of how drunk the Earth dragon is, as his speech is heavily stammered, so has his ability to make sense for the last half hour. However, with a simple nod of his head, Spyro allows the inebriated drake to ask his question.

"Why her?"

Anger begins filling the tired eyes of the purple dragon, and knowing he may have crossed the line, Brazin backs up his question with a reason for asking it.

"Don't get me wrong here...I'm not trying to be a jerk, and I don't want you to think I'm tryin' ta start a fight cause...I'm not drunk..." he pause swallowing the contents of his stomach, which try to make their way back up.

"Well...I'm not that drunk, okay, but I am curious as to why the purple dragon..."

Brazin pauses again, looking back at Spyro, and sizing him up in a second.

"Whom I would find hansom if I were attracted to you..." his eyes pop open, and the drunk dragon pauses again. "...which I'm not..."

Cynder, whom is listening in her sleep, smiles, hearing the normally strong Earth dragon crumble with every word. However, he finally asks the question, as his beer muscles return.

"...why wouldn't you just find a different mate?"

Brazin pauses again, taking another sip from his glass then continues with a stronger tone.

"Any dragoness would say yes to you...hell, I think Ember would leave me if you showed interest."

The larger dragon pauses again, taking another sip of his drink, knowing the truth in that statement. His eyes then return to Spyro, locking on the purple dragon spiraling in the middle of his swirled vision.

"Well?"

Spyro also pauses for a moment, placing a paw upon Cynder's head, then scratching between her horns softly. He smiles as she snorts out a loud purring sound of contentment.

" ** _She's got a way about her. I don't know what it is, but I know that I can't live without her._ "**

The purple dragon smiles, recalling many wonderful moments in Cynder's company, all the while feeling her every subtle movement through his fingertips.

" ** _She's got a way of pleasin'. I don't know why it is, but there doesn't have to be a reason, Anyway._ "**

Spyro looks over at Brazin, showing a grin that beams from ear to ear, and allowing the large dragon to understand just how deep these feelings go

" ** _She's got a smile that heals me. I don't know what it is, but I have to laugh when she reveals it._ " **He continues, slowly standing up, so not to disturb her, and padding over to the half empty bottle of Ale sitting beside its owner. Brazin refills the small goblet Spyro drank from earlier, giving him a second shot of the tasty, but potent, potable.

" ** _She's got a way of talkin'...Ohh..._ " **Spyro pauses for a second, after uncontrollably adding the rhythmic sound, suddenly wanting to break into song. However, he composes himself, holding back the side effects of the Avalarian Ale. **" _...I don't know why it is, but it lifts me up when we are walkin' Anywhere._ "**

Spyro sits beside Brazin, staring at the black dragoness who has had him in her clutches since the day he first saw her.

" ** _She comes to me when I'm feeling down, and inspires me, without a sound._ " **The purple dragon confesses, then takes a deep breath recalling the first time she placed a soft paw upon his cheek. **" _When she touches me... I get turned around._ "**

" ** _She's got a way of showin'...MMM..._ " **again Spyro pauses, as another rhythmic sound is produced, but this time, he doesn't stop and finishes the sentence with the joy he can no longer hold back **"... _how I make her feel, and I find the strength to keep on goin'._**

The Earth Dragon quickly understands, as these feelings fill his heart when speaking of his soul mate, Ember. However, not everyone is so understanding, as the purple dragon continues raising his voice in song.

 ** _"She's got a light around her... Ohh, and anywhere she goes, a million dreams of my love surround her, Everywhere._ "**

"That's sweet, Loverboy!" Cyrus groans sarcastically from the background. "Now if you don't mind...some of us are sleeping...including the one your singing about!"

Spyro quickly holds a paw over his mouth, realizing how late it is, and that his voice was louder than he expected. He becomes even more terrified noticing Cynder has opened her eyes.

"I'm sorry, baby, I didn't mean to wake you!" he blurts, again a bit louder than the remaining group would have hoped. However, as she gets to her feet, stretches out her front paws, then pads over to the pair of dragons, Spyro is stunned to see a smile.

"But...I like when you sing to me." she teases, as even Spyro knows his voice is not made for rhythm. However, when Cynder rubs her cheek against his, then glides under his chin with her muzzle, the purple dragon begins serenading again.

" _ **She comes to me when I'm feeling down, and inspires me, without a sound.**_ **"** He looks at Brazin with a smug grin, as Cynder grinds her entire right flank and posterior against his gold chest, provocatively.

 ** _"When she touches me...I get turrrnned around...Ohh ohohhhh!"_  
**

Cynder turns around, her face blushing bright red from how loud Spyro is professing his love in song. She places a single paw gently over the purple dragon's mouth, stopping his outburst from waking everyone, but it is too late. However, as embarrassed as she is, her eyes remain locked upon his, showing the pure love she feels in what he is doing.

Spyro understands her green eyes without a word, and though they say keep it down, they also say I want the world to hear this. He slowly lowers her paw from his mouth, allowing him to finish the song in his head, one he heard in a dream while fighting against the Dark Master so long ago. _( I would listen to Billy Joel, amongst other things, while playing.)_

" _ **She's got a smile that heals me. I don't know what it is, but I have to laugh when she reveals it.**_ **"**

His voice is soft, and it quickly brings the smile he longs for. Spyro embraces her tightly staring at Brazin while finally giving him his answer.

" ** _She's got a way about her. I don't know what it is, but I know that I can't live without her... Anymore_ "**

Cynder backs away from the embrace after a long comforting hug, showing the glistening tears of joy that fill her eyes. She quickly kisses the one that helps clear the darkness from her every nightmare, drawing the life she needs to continue breathing, along with a taste of what he had to drink.

"Are you okay?" she suddenly asks, as Spyro begins listing to the right, and before he can correct himself, the purple dragon is down on his gold belly.

"I'm fine..." he replies, looking up at Cynder with a bit of confusion in his eyes. "...but how did you get up there?"

Cynder balks then looks over at Brazin, whom smugly grins while filling his stone goblet with another dose of the strong spirits.

"How many of those did you give him?"

"Let's see... _I_ gave him the first one..." Brazin takes a swig from the stone glass he made, then pick up the much smaller one he made for Spyro. "...then he just came over here and filled his glass a second time before you woke up."

She balks again, looking at the tiny shot glass in Brazin's paw, before staring at her strong, powerful, almost unbreakable hero.

"Only _two_ drinks, Spyro?!"

This draws a strong laugh from Cyrus, whom stares at his big brother with an odd expression.

"Dad couldn't hold his liquor either." the two toned blue dragon pauses, recalling several instances when he saw his Earth breathing father take a drink from a similar bottle, especially on the colder days in the North Mountains.

Cyrus pauses again, his emotions churning inside, recalling the many instances his dad would act foolish around his mom after taking a few sips, knowing in hindsight, it was not really the alcohol that made him do it.

"He would start singing to mom, then dance around like a child without a care. But now I can see, it was never the alcohol that made him act that way." Again the young dragon pauses, noticing Spyro struggle to stay focused on him, and realizing maybe it is not exactly the same.

"Well, maybe _you_ are drunk, but Dad never was. It was the love he felt for mom...that's why he was so _different_ around her."

Spyro's eyes quickly show pain, as the alcohol in his body begins hindering his ability to keep his emotions in check. Nor can he keep his voice down.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you...maybe I coulda stopped it from happening..."

"Hey!" Cyrus cuts off his brother with an angered tone in his voice. "Stop blaming yourself for things you had no control of..." his eyes snap to Cynder, whom suddenly looks uncomfortable with the conversation.

"And that goes for you too!" he continues a bit louder than he wanted, getting an angered stare from a woken Terrador. He immediately rises from his cool spot on the rock and pads quietly over to the trio of dragons who are already awake.

He sits on the other side of Brazin, staring hard at his big brother and Cynder.

"You two saved the world and yet all you do is apologize for everything." Cyrus grasps the bottle from Brazin's paw, getting a stern look from all three around, as he is still underage by a year. However, after a quick sniff to inspect the contents, he hands the bottle back to the Earth dragon with a smile on his face.

"My dad had the same stuff."

His eyes then return to Spyro and Cynder.

"You two need to stop caring about what _everyone_ elsethinks and focus on yourselves."

Cyrus' remarks are quickly understood, as Spyro and Cynder turn to one another and smile. He then gives Brazin his attention, stopping the brown drake from raising another drink to his muzzle.

"And _you..._ You need to stop looking for a reason to be angry _all_ the time."

Brazin becomes angry, yanking the drink from under Cyrus' paw, and bringing it up to his mouth. He shoots it down fast, returning the stone glass to the ground before turning back to his newest friend.

"Now just what am _I_ angry about, _Boy_."

Cyrus looks at his big brother and notices he is already ready to defend him, as Brazin becomes increasingly hostile. So, he replies with a straight forward answer.

"Cause you think _you_ are the reason your brother is dead."

Spyro, shocked at how blunt his young sibling's answer is, and is unable to react fast enough to stop Brazin's paw from striking Cyrus across the mouth. However, not being under the influence, the teenager easily grasps Brazin's arm after impact, pulling the larger Earth dragon off balance and tossing him over onto his flank.

Cyrus immediately seals the stone drake's magic inside with a blast of Ice, snuffing his mouth and nose, then holds him down in an awkward position.

"Now settle yourself and listen... _before_ you pass out..." the young dragon remarks, again with a shocking amount of calmness in his voice. He glances up at his brother and Cynder, whom are stunned beyond words at the ability this young dragon has in battle.

"...I'm not trying to be a jerk, _friend_ , but I know how you blame yourself for what happened."

Feeling Brazin back down from his rage, Cyrus fires a single ice pellet from his mouth, shattering the cold muzzle he placed on the Earth dragon's face. He quickly yanks the larger drake back up onto four paws, then helps him down to his stomach, as Brazin is still a bit discombobulated from the sudden movements.

Cyrus grasps the bottle of spirits again, pours a small amount into Brazin's stone cup, then slides it before the reeling dragon.

"Trust me, I understand why you feel that way." Cyrus continues, looking down at the ground as his own guilt has been eating at him for the entire day. "My little brother is gone, and though everyone tells me it's not my fault, I cannot help but question why I wasn't watching him better."

"Well...I'm kinda thankful you didn't see it happen." Spyro suddenly chimes in, stunning Cyrus with his odd confession.

"Why!?" the young dragon asks, his angry blue eyes now locked upon his brother.

Spyro smirks before giving his reply.

"Because you are just like me...and would have chased you brother's kidnapper down to the ends of Avalar."

"Exactly! And we would not be here right now if I caught him." the blue dragon returns, his anger more pronounced than before.

Spyro's smile leaves, and he takes a deep breath

"And if you did, it would have led you to a possible _deadly_ conclusion."

Cyrus turn his head away from Spyro, disgusted by how he is still treating him like a child.

"I would not have lost that fight, brother." he remarks with almost sarcastic tone, pointing at the much larger dragon he easily handled when it mattered. "A Cheetah's strength is nothing compared to a dragon's...I woulda tore him apart to get Blake back."

"Watch it, young Master!" Meadow's voice calls out from the pair of Cheetah warriors, whom continue watching the perimeter. "I may be in my forties, but I can still easily whip your little draconian butt."

Spyro smirks again, but for only a moment as the thought he had before returns.

"I know you would have torn him apart, Cyrus, but that's the problem." Spyro's eyes lose focus, recalling the fight he had only a few weeks earlier, when he hurt a desperate dragon that was just trying to get their family's vengeance.

Several youngsters were there to watch their hero show an ugly side they never knew he had, an ugly side that anyone would show to defend the one they loved.

"Do you really want Blake to see you like that?" He says, his voice barely audible, remembering the terrified look on the three whelplings' faces, when he viciously struck the dragon that tried to attack Cynder.

"Do you really want him to see you _kill,_ because that's something that will stay with him for life."

Cyrus pauses, then looks dead into his brother's eyes.

"I would have no problem letting him see his big brother's vicious side, if it meant having him under my wing at this very moment."

He looks at Cynder, his eyes remaining stern.

"Trust me...I could have dealt with the vision of my father, snapping the neck of the _Terror of the Sky_ , if it meant that he could still be here today."

Cyrus can see how disturbing that last statement was to her, and to his brother. His paw is out to Cynder's arm in a flash as she tries to stand up.

"But that didn't happen..." he says softly, easing the black dragon with a comforting squeeze of her paw. Cynder's tear filled eyes are quickly shown a smile, helping make her feel better, however, it is what this young dragon says with conviction that finally allows Cynder to loosen up.

"...instead, my big brother destroyed that abomination, and rescued the one enslaved within."

Seeing the black dragon settle down in her place after his comment, Cyrus again takes focus on his brother.

"Besides, my paws are not totally free of blood, Spyro, and believe you me, Blake has been witness to my _dark_ side on several occasions, just ask Mom when we get home." A smug grin crosses his face, as he recalls one instance when he defend his home.

"I personally stopped a small army of apes by causing an avalanche that swallowed them before they could get in the house."

The blue dragon smirks even wider recalling the way Skylar reacted to this plan of attack.

"Mom must have yelled at me for at least twenty seconds straight, cause half the snow came inside and buried the living room. But then she hugged me for an hour, because I also closed off any way the apes could enter the cave, allowing us to feel safe for the long winter months."

Cyrus looks up at the sky, showing his father a smile, recalling the moment he personally believes that he became a dragon.

"Mom said Dad would have been proud of me, cause I didn't hold anything back to protected my family." his eyes again return to Spyro, showing the resolve he had in his actions years ago, the same resolve he uses in his words to big brother now.

"And even though he was very young, Blake remembers that day well, because it was his second birthday." The blue dragon chuckles to himself recalling how happy his little brother was to play in the snow, while inside the house. "He said it was the best birthday present I could ever give him, even though I don't really think he understands what I did, except that I made it snow inside."

Tthe two toned dark blue dragon pauses again, as a cold thought of what could have been fills his mind, if he didn't resort to such violence.

"I cringe to think what might have happened if I didn't use the power Dad taught me to use in an emergency. And even though I know those apes died a painful death, I was happy they would never have a chance to attack my little brother and mother again!"

"Settle down, Cyrus." Terrador grumbles, raising his head slightly from the ground, an showing the young dragon a concerned pair of eyes. "You did the right thing, now be quiet before you do the wrong thing, and wake Oswald."

"I'm already awake." the red dragon mumbles, opening one eye to show he is not sleeping. He takes a very pronounced sniff before raising his head from the nasty smelling ground. "Who can sleep, laying on a petrified turd?"

Oswald gets up on his feet, stretches out his paws, then treks the few paces over to the conversing group of youngsters. His eyes lock upon Cynder as he lays down beside her, and he shows her a smile to ease her nerves.

"We do what we must to protect the ones we love..." he says, raising his paw up to Cynder's cheek, and gently rubbing the spot where his daughter, Shannon, had struck the dark dragoness. "...and when we fail, we sometimes lash out at anyone that we feel responsible, even when they are not."

"But I am responsible for this." she says.

"That's nonsense!" Brazin's voice is very stern, pulling Cynder and Oswald's attention to him.

"You are not to blame for the kidnapping of those youngsters, regardless of what you did...I mean, what _The Terror of the Sky_ did in the past."

Cynder is stunned to see and hear Brazin lose his rough edge in this one comment, as he actually feels bad for blaming her again. But mostly, it shows the dark dragoness he is trying to separate the two dragons in his mind.

"You keep apologizing for something you say you didn't do..." Brazin's voice tightens up once again as he finally uncovers the reason why he has never backed down from her. "...and because you continually show guilt, it makes you look guilty, and this is frustrating to most."

Brazin looks at Spyro, waiting for him to intervene, yet the purple dragon remains silent, almost begging him to continue this verbal assault on Cynder. He has been saying the same thing to her for weeks, as most altercations in the street begin with her apologizing for something she claims she didn't do.

"What should I say?" she begs, as Spyro has not had a definitive answer for this simple question.

Brazin looks at the purple dragon again, whom now shows the same wanting look that Cynder has, as he really doesn't know what she can do without angering someone.

"Tell them to go to hell!" he bluntly replies, finally drawing a response from Spyro.

"And if they don't like _that_ answer... and decide to take a swing at her."

Brazin smugly smiles, then looks dead into Cynder's green eyes.

"Then she should show them how fruitless their attempts will be."

"You want me to fight back!?" She cries almost terrified at this thought, however, Brazin suddenly changes his tactics to prove a point.

"Why did you kill my brother?"

"I didn't mean to..." she replies, and quickly Brazin's paw is across her face.

Spyro is on his feet in half a heartbeat, but shockingly so is Cyrus.

"NO! Spyro!" the young blue dragon barks at his brother, startling everyone as he turns to Cynder and shows anger. "She is not answering the question correctly, and deserved to be hit!"

Brazin is the only one in the group who shows a smile, as Cyrus gets up in the black dragoness' face and gives her a new response.

"Your answer should be...'I didn't kill him! You have me mistake for a different dragon.' Period!"

Spyro, pushes his brother away getting face to face with him.

"She's tried that, Cyrus! But no one believed her! Hell no one listened to her!" the purple dragon argues, recalling several instances when Cynder made claim that her dark side was killed by her hero. And even with him standing there, backing her story up, they still didn't believe her.

"All they did was spit on her..." he begins saying somberly, and the young blue dragon cuts his big brother off with anger in his voice.

"And what the hell did you do to stop that? Huh!"

Spyro remains dumbfounded for a second, as his answer is not the one he wants to say.

"You did _nothing..._ except apologize." Cyrus answers himself, as Brazin has told him how his big brother responds to these assaults on Cynder.

"What do you want me to do!?"

Cyrus suddenly takes a swing at his brother, and without even thinking, Spyro holds time. He moves out of the way of the young dragon's tail strike, then grasps him so he don't fall over from an awkward loss of balance It takes only a moment for Cyrus to understand what happened, when he ends up in his brother's secured arms. He then looks up at the purple dragon with a rather smug grin on his face.

"You can easily do that..." Cyrus pulls himself from Spyro's arms with a sturdy shove.

"...but no matter what, you get them the hell away from Cynder, without her having feel sorry for just trying to live her life." The younger brother then looks over at Cynder, a seriousness in his eyes as he tells her what he believes.

"A life that _both_ of my brothers told me she fought hard for... and the life she _deserves_ to have back."

Cynder lowers her head, overwhelmed by the guilt she still feels, as her respect and love for this young dragon raises to a level only reached by Spyro and Blake.

"You really believe that...don't you?"

Cyrus reaches out a paw, cups Cynder's lowered jaw, and lifts it up so she can see the truth in his lavender blues.

"With every fiber of my being."

Cynder grasps the slightly smaller dragon with her front paws, then hoists him up as she leans back on her hind haunches. The black dragoness crushes him in her arms and wings with a strong embrace, releasing a great deal of tension in one very powerful moment.

"I promise...I'll never say I'm sorry to you, _ever_ again..." she whispers hard in the young teen's ear, making sure he hears the resolve in her voice. It puts a smile on his face, and he quickly shows it to his big brother. However, as Cynder kisses him on the cheek, sending a chill down the spine of the Ice dragon, it changes the look on his face

"...but I will say...thank you...Sweetie."

Cynder puts the reeling young dragon back down on his feet, releasing him from the cloud he was just held in. He crumbles in place, overwhelmed by a secret crush he has on the black dragoness, just like his other brother, or most male dragons on Avalar.

Cyrus' smile widens across his face, as the euphoric feeling of being kissed by the pretty dragoness breaks his train of thought. He takes a moment to catch his breath before turning back to look his brother in the eye.

"You are so right, Spyro..." he says, then once again turns his attention to her.

"...She has a way about her."

* * *

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Let me know with a few words.**


	22. Decree

**Sorry about the length in between posts again, but I have been a busy bee. I know you all don't really care why I've been busy, so I won't bore you.**

 **Again I thank those that took the time to review last chapter HolyCross9, V-SxC, Dragon-Uprising, Gameguy95, and Xbox gamer. Keep em coming.**

* * *

Chapter 21 Decree

It sounded cool when it was suggested, and since then, Blake's lavender blue eyes have been wide open for the journey, taking in the splendor of the underground city that Kooresh has called his home for more than a decade. Its beauty, surpassed only by the size of the cavern it sits in, overwhelms him, however, as they reach the only exit the colossal dragon can leave from, the tiny blue dragon begins to have second thoughts about climbing out a volcano.

Having grown another three feet over the past ten years, the colossal Earth dragon can no longer fit out the door he originally entered, nor can he squeeze through the gate into Warfang itself. In fact, the large dragon has only been able to exit his home via the large caldera of Mount Rapaport, to the north of the dragon city.

The massive drake took flight over the calm pool of boiling lava, and with the heat off the magma chamber collecting under his wings, Kooresh rose up to the cylindrical tunnel that leads out to the surface. He grasped the granite wall with a single paw and retracted his wings, pulling himself and his two tiny riders up and out of his home.

So now, with a death grip upon the right horn of Kooresh, Blake continues looking straight up towards the darkening sky. His fear of heights, a normal thing for young dragons who cannot fly well, is intensified as his _ex_ girlfriend keeps telling him to look down.

"Wow, Blake!" Shale's voice echoes in the now narrowing chamber their colossal sized friend has climbed to the very top of. "You can still see all the way down to the magma chamber of this volcano..." she pauses to compose her laughter as Blake tightens his grip again, then adds to his fear.

"...it's gotta be like two thousand feet down."

"Two thousand seven hundred and ninety six to be exact." Kooresh adds, quickly getting a loud "SHUT UP!" from his right horn.

Blake's angry shout only makes the large dragon smile wider.

"What!? We're still a few hundred feet from the top, so we're not that high yet." Kooresh suddenly snaps his head around to look down at the base of the volcano, flipping both children like rag dolls around. Blake freaks out upon loosing his grip, though, he only moves a few inches before digging his claws into Kooresh's giant horn, holding his death grip even tighter.

"Don't do that again, you big jerk!?" He cries, as Kooresh's laughter fills the chamber. However, as he looks over and notices his friend missing, the young dragon becomes even more terrified

"SHALE!" he cries, looking down toward the lava chamber to see if she fell. The height makes him snap his head back and tighten his grip even further, and this is when Shale lowers down from the spot she hid above him, hovering directly before his frightened eyes

"BOO!"

Blake loses his grasp, startled by the young dragoness who quickly grasps his paw. Her laughter echoes even louder than Kooresh's, whom waits for her to return the younger dragon's grasp to the back of his head, before continuing his journey out of the volcano.

"I'm sorry, young dragon...I couldn't help myself. That was funny." The large Earth bender remarks with a snicker of joy in his voice, however, that fades fast when he hears Blake weeping with fear.

"I would never let you fall..." he begins to say, until hearing the sound of a scuffle behind his head, then the large dragon becomes a bit angry.

"Hey! Don't make me come back there...I'll make sure you two stop fighting for the rest of this trip.

"But she..."

"But _she_ nothing!" the large dragon barges in, stopping his ascent a hundred feet from the top of the volcano. "Shale is a _girl_ , and you do not strike a girl under any circumstances."

"You tell him!" Shale adds, trying to pile on to the chastising, but only drawing a verbal berating herself.

"And you stop tormenting Blake, before you do the stupidest thing you do in _life_."

The orange fire breather gives a little chuckle, however, after hearing the seriousness in Kooresh's voice, she gets very quiet, very quick. Shale releases her grip on the large brown dragon's horn and flies around to face him.

"What do you mean by that?" is asked, a deep seriousness in her voice now.

The large dragon can still hear and feel Blake's Icy-cold rage upon his right ear, as he continues snorting angrily.

"Trust me, young lady... you don't want to lose this one as a friend."

Kooresh, not wanting to annoy his terrified guest any further, decides to climb straight out of the caldera.

The orange dragoness simply shakes her head at the thought of losing Blake as a friend, however, as the large dragon pass by, and she notices the anger written on his young rider's face, Shale understand how wrong she may be.

"Wait!" She yelps, flying up quickly with the warm air at her back, and grasping Kooresh's left horn for the ride out. She looks over at Blake, whom turns his head away from her, causing her to feel even worse.

"I'm sorry I was a jerk." the young dragoness says softly, realizing how she's done nothing but tease him about his inability to fly the entire day, even before this all happened. It makes him turn his head back to face her, but only for a moment before turning away again.

She can tell he is mad, but with that quick look, she also knows he is listening to her and will have a chance to use her verbal skills to make things right.

"Listen Blake...I was afraid...and I didn't want you to see me like that...so..."

"So you act like a jerk!" He fires back, putting a smile on Kooresh's face, as Blake drops the silent treatment already.

"Yeah..." Shale replies, then smiles as Blake looks at her again. "...But you have to admit, you couldn't tell I was afraid...could you?"

The large dragon listens with great joy as the two youngster bicker back and forth, hearing the chemistry that makes a good friendship as both never get nasty with their arguments, only more and more sarcastic. However, even he is impressed by the way Shale takes command of the conversation, fixing two problems in one moment.

"Well if you shut up and listen...I can help teach you to fly right now! " she says, just as Kooresh reaches the top of Mt. Rapaport, and begins his long glide down from the northern mountains.

Shale releases her grasp of the large dragon's horn, dropping down to his massive back.

"Come on! It's safe now." She barks out, walking around in a circle to show they are no longer in danger of falling to their deaths.

Blake reluctantly releases his grip, gliding down to the spot where Shale is standing. However, before he touches down on the colossal brown scales of Kooresh's back, the young dragoness is up in the air above him.

Shale's arms are around his mid section before he even knows what happens. Her dark reddish orange wings spread out as wide as they can, taking on the extra weight of another dragon. She struggles at first, trying to hold Blake steady, which quickly makes him open his wings.

Sitting in an undisturbed bubble of air, their flight is as smooth as silk, giving Shale an easy platform to teach, as she to is not an expert aviator. However, as they begin gaining height off Kooresh's back, the young dragoness uses her charm to help teach him.

"Curl your wings down, Stupid! We're going too high" she barks in his ear and quickly Blake turns his head to look at her angrily.

"NOOOO!"

Like with his brother, this turn of his head changes the aerodynamics of their flight, and as an untested flier, Shale loses control. Now a dozen feet off Kooresh's back, both dragons crash hard to the colossal dragon's rock hard scales.

"I can't believe you did that twice in one day!" she yells at the blue dragon, after untangling herself from him. She literally grasps his head, yanking it forward, showing him how he needs to hold steady.

"LETS TRY A STRAIGHT LINE FIRST!"

Her voice scares Blake to remain motionless for a moment, however, as she straddles him again, and the young dragon begins turning his head around to look at what she's doing.

"Wow! You're not that bright are you?" Kooresh's voice startles Blake to look forward, and he stares in shock as the large dragon has turned his head completely around while in mid flight.

"How are you doing that!?" he asks and Shale quickly answers.

"It's not hard to turn your body when flying..." she remarks with an attitude, while opening her wings to take in the wind. She then squeezes Blake tightly with her arms as he begins turning his head again. "...but you need to learn how to fly straight first!"

* * *

The candle-lit streets of Warfang have never been busier, as all of the cities inhabitants continue moving towards the palace, gathering for a late evening session called by the Guardians.

No one knows exactly what will be said in the great arena at the base of the Dragon's Tower, but everyone knows what topic will be discussed, as it has been the main conversation by most outside already.

 _Cynder._

The name is heard throughout the city, and of course blame and guilt and hate follow suit. However, for the first time ever, there are arguments against her damnation, and surprisingly these voices begin outweighing those of her opposition.

"She didn't kidnap them children!" An old gray dragon finally barks, as someone accuses Cynder of being a part of the crime that happened earlier this morning. The frail, but still somewhat spry drake, steps out into a small open area, calling attention to herself.

"This just ain't right, everyone!" she continues adamantly, making sure all within earshot pay heed to her experienced words.

"We can't keep blamin' her fer everythin' bad that happens!"

"Yeah!"

The gray drake is shocked, as is most of the crowd, when several others vocally back up her claim. It gives this old dragoness a boost to her spirit and she quickly adds to her charge.

"She's been nothin' but kind ta me, when I run into her with Spyro on the streets, even after I called her a evil worthless killer...and much much worse."

The old dragoness pauses, recalling the look in Cynder's eyes, after being verbally beaten by an elder dragon she was just hoping to get a simple hello from. From that day, the black dragoness will not say a single word to one of the neighbors of her new home, unless spoken to first, and then the fear in her words makes the old dragon cringe.

"It pains me to think, what this poor young lady must be feelin', knowin' she saved a world that only wants her dead now!" she looks around, making eye contact with the entire group, whom continue staring at the old gray dragon that has taken center stage in protest.

"We cannot remain blind to the fact that we are here 'cause of her..."

"And what about your husband's death!? Are you going to close your eyes to the fact that _Cynder_ killed him?"

The questions stops the old dragoness cold, and her eyes find the one who spoke out in defiance, using such harsh tactics to bring her rant to an end. However, after a single thought passes through her mind, the old dragoness smiles.

"She didn't kill my Clarence...I know that now." this old dragon remarks with confidence in her words, staring at the one who questioned her, showing him that her eyes are now open to the truth.

"And the fact that you cannot see this, makes you as blind as a Manweresmall."

Some grunts come from the ground level, as several of the small mole-like creatures are gathered nearby, all heading to the palace arena in support of Cynder. This group, having first hand knowledge of how the former Terror of the Sky fought with the purple dragon to stop a siege upon the already distressed city of Warfang, just give the old drake a sour look.

"You know damn well we are not completely blind, Grace. In fact, I saw most of what happened on the day Warfang was assaulted by Malefor's army of evil monsters." the leader of the group remarks, then lowers his goggles down over his eyes after getting no response from a good friend. He quickly realizes he was speaking to the wrong dragon, and turns his attention to the right dragon.

"Okay, so I _am_ blind, but I still take offense to that comment, my lady."

The old dragoness smiles, then bows to the tiny warrior, showing her respect to one of the golden armored Manweresmalls, as well as her friend. She quickly backs down, allowing the group to pass, before returning her attention to the one who spoke out against her.

"I don't think Sargent MajorMason, of the Manweresmall Marine Corp...would lie? Do you?" She pauses to smirk in the younger dragon's face, as everyone on Avalar knows how these creatures value honor above all other things. She then turns her attention back to the palace doors, as several Guardians bow with respect to the tiny army of mole-like creatures. Her old grin remains solid as her eyes find the green-scaled drake who angered her.

After she gets nothing but a few empty breaths in return, her grin gets even wider.

"I didn't think so, young whelpling."

The old gray dragoness turns back to a crowd that has doubled in size to witness the commotion.

"Cynder is not to blame for what has happened here today!" she looks everyone in the eye with a slow three hundred and sixty degree turn of her old frame, making sure the world sees her resolve as she continues.

"And she is also not to blame for what happened in the past!"

The crowd gives a somewhat mixed reaction to this old dragoness' decree, which echo up to the lower balcony of the palace, where another disagreement has been going roughly the same way.

"You know, you're the only one that can stop this nonsense Skylar..." Sharon remarks, watching the group below become rowdy, as the dark dragoness is discussed more vehemently. The young mother, still holding her older child, Shannon, tightly in her arms, looks upon the two toned blue dragoness with the same anger that most have towards Cynder.

"...by telling your son he should not be seeing that...that... _murderer_...anymore."

Her words are soft, but send a loud message, and Skylar simply lowers her head.

"Wow...I didn't expect that." her voice is also soft, showing how upsetting that thought is with her somber tone and actions.

"I had thought you and your husband volunteered to live next door to Spyro and Cynder...at least that is what my son told me."

The blue dragoness looks down toward the home Spyro has taken in the Fire section of the city, which sits directly across the packed street of protestors. Her eyes then focus upon the balcony of Sharon's home, where several of Warfang's Elite Guard have taken position during this crisis.

"He said that no one wanted to live by _her_ , except a few of the elders. But...Spyro didn't want that." Skylar looks down at a still very weepy Shannon, focusing on the exact reason her eldest son begged for different neighbors. "He wanted a family, with children, so Cynder could..."

Skylar pauses, as Spyro had told her this in secret, yet this moment could not prove a better reason to break a promise. Her eyes show how painful it was for her child to talk about it, and more so as she fumbles for the words herself.

"...so Cynder could see what it was like... to see a pair of young siblings playing together. Allowing her to experience a bit of the childhood she never had a chance to witness... until now."

Skylar slowly grins knowing how Spyro's life changed even more so, the day he heard the news of his own family's return. A family that now works together to get back what was taken from them.

"I don't think he expected to have another pair of siblings under his _own_ roof..." Skylar's grin turns to a smile as she looks down at the small potted tree on Spyro's balcony, knowing exactly what lays under it.

"...well, at least not this soon."

The blue dragoness takes a second to fancy the thought of possibly becoming a grandmother soon, but quickly returns to the moment at hand. Her eyes strengthen before looking down at the young girl held tightly in her mother's arms.

"My son will make sure your sister is returned unharmed...I promise you that." She says with conviction, knowing just how important Shannon and Shale have been to her son, as they truly have been helpful in Cynder's rehabilitation.

"How can you be so sure?" the terrified young dragon replies, making Skylar show some doubt in her confidence. Shannon's thoughts are filled with only horrible images, one of which she says aloud, showing the depression this young dragoness feels.

"They don't need my sister, so she may already be dead."

"Don't think like that, Shannon..." mom voices strongly in her daughter's ear, tightening the grip upon her eldest child.

"...your sister is not..."

Unable to say what she is hoping, Sharon begins losing control of her emotions, as the same thought is swirling around in her mind as well. Skylar quickly envelops both mother and daughter into an embrace with her arms and wings, surrounding them in a comforting blanket of her support.

"They are alive..." she whispers softly, then her voice strengthens as she finishes. "...both of them."

The three just sit there for a moment, holding each other as the pain of the unknown continues taring at their emotions. However, with another pain eating at the youngest of three women, hearing the voices of hatred from below, Shannon says something that startles both Skylar and Sharon.

"Do you think Cynder's mad at me now, Mom?"

Sharon lowers her shoulders, knowing how her oldest daughter has built a bond with their neighbor, and how she has had only one other thought swirling around in her head. She looks up at her mother, whom gently brushes the tears from her daugter's eyes.

"I didn't mean to hit her like that."

"You don't blame Cynder for this?" Skylar asks with a bit of shock, especially seeing how hostile Shannon was with the Shadow dragoness after Shale was taken.

This gets the young girl to break from her crying, if only for a moment to speak with resolve.

"I was so upset when I lost Shale...and everyone kept yelling her name..." she says with pain in her voice, then pauses as the crowd below continues spewing the hate that caused her paw to strike a new friend.

"I was angry and stupid, and I hope she understands I don't blame her for what happened...I just..."

The young girl stops talking as the moment replays in her mind.

"You wanted to hit someone...and she was standing there, _smiling_." Skylar remarks after a long pause, as this feeling has crept into a widow's mind several times, especially living under the same roof with her husband's supposed killer.

"I didn't mean to hurt her feelings like that." Shannon cries, remembering how quickly the Shadow dragon's eyes changed, the moment one of her only friends in the world had turned on her. The pain of the young dragoness' impact paled in comparison to the shock of who had struck her.

Shannon buries her head into her mom's chest, making the next words she cries hard to understand, though both mothers hear her clearly.

"I hope she will forgive me too."

"Of course she will, Sweetheart." Sharon whispers to her daughter, holding her tightly as the shuddering child's nerves increase. "You've been nothing but nice to her, I'm sure she'll understand why you did that."

Several grunts from behind get all three women to turn their head towards the large french doors that lead out on the balcony.

"My brother seams to agree with you Sharon!" Infurnus translates the rough words his brother uses, as both fire dragons step out into the evening air. Several more grunts are whispered to the younger drake, whom smiles and turns to the trio of dragonesses and bows.

"In fact, he's asking if you three ladies would like to come with us, and help make this decree official."

The elder black and orange dragon, and new Fire Guardian, steps directly up to the youngest dragon, still held tightly in her mother's paws.

"How... 'bout... it... Shan... non? Will... you... help... me... read... this... new... law... to... the... world?" Kelvin grumbles slowly, looking down upon the now completely star struck young fire dragon, as the large black and orange Guardian hands her an official looking scroll..

"You want me to proclaim a law before everyone!?" she replies with shock, and Kelvin smiles confidently, even after seeing her fear. He grumbles softly to his brother, whom also smiles, and repeats what was said.

"I think it's important that a friend of the Shadow Dragon should be the one to stop this."

Shannon looks up at her mother, whom is also stunned to hear her daughter will now be speaking in the great arena, and without delay begins nodding her head up and down. However, before she can voice her approval of this honor

"GET TO YOUR HOMES! THE CITY IS UNDER ATTACK!" is yelled from below, taking everyone's attention as this armored dragon flies just above the street, warning his fellow residents of Warfang to take shelter.

Several loud horns begin blaring from the north wall, as a large, unknown, flying object is spotted in the darkening skies, rising up over the mountains.

Most of the drakes below take the shelter they were warned to, by simply entering the arena before them. However, more than a dozen take to the sky, heading for the North Gate to defend their home.

Skylar's wings are also fast to open wide, and she is quickly in the air, noticing the large beast approaching from the north.

"NO!" Kelvin's broken voice yells, causing great pain to the black dragon. His reddish orange wings open as well, and with a powerful thrust, he is directly in front of Spyro's mother.

He says nothing to her, though his eyes say everything, and quickly Skylar understands, but she still argues her case to come along.

"I know this has something to do with my baby's disappearance, and I'm not the type of dragon that does well sitting around waiting!"

Kelvin can see the resolve in the Ice dragon's eyes and quickly he takes a disheartening deep breath. He then looks down at his brother and grumbles angrily.

"Fine!" Infurnus barks, using the inflections his brother wants, as he can tell Kelvin is annoyed with his choice.

"By you stay right behind my brother, or I will..."

Infurnus holds his brother's translation, as he realizes he meant him, and his eyes are quickly up to his older sibling.

"WHOA! I'M NOT GOING!"

Again Kelvin says nothing and gets a response with just the angered look in his eyes.

"Okay... Okay dude...but I'm staying like a hundred yards back!"

Kelvin snickers at his brother, whom always seems to want to be a part of the action, until it's dangerous of course. However, wanting Spyro's biological mother as far away from this danger as possible, he has no problem with his brother's slight cowardice.

"Stay... with... hi..."

Skylar's paw is up to Kelvin's muzzle, stopping him from using his damaged voice, and also easing the nerves of a young new Guardian.

"I will make sure _we_ stay out of range."

Kelvin gives her a smile, then looks towards the north mountain range, where this large creature begins filling the horizon.

"I... swear... that... looks... like... a... dragon." He says with his slow spoken words. His eyes show Skylar the confusion he is trying to convey, as this flying creature is easily three times the size of Malefor.

"But... that's... impossible. Right?"

Skylar takes a moment, as she recalls a story told her in the past, then nods her head yes. This pause catches Kelvin's attention, but he quickly dismisses it and begins heading for the North gate.

Unable to ask another question, as Skylar hangs back with Infurnus, the new Fire Guardian keeps heading towards the gate, wondering why she hesitated with her response. And as both parties get closer, the large fire dragon stops wondering.

"Wait... a... damn... minute! That... is... a... dragon!" he struggles out with excitement, stopping a few hundred feet short of the North Gate and allowing both his brother and Skylar to get by his side. However, before he can repeat what they didn't hear him say.

"PREPARE TO FIRE!" is heard from the rampart tower below.

* * *

 **Uh no...are you kidding me. Stupid Manweresmalls are gonna shoot Blake and Shale out of the sky...or are they?**

 **Stay tuned and see what happens next.**


	23. Intruders

**Never did I expect the amount of support I have received from this little story, and in truth, it has gotten a bit out of hand. I didn't want to make it a full length story, but I am having fun again, so you guys will reap the rewards. If that sounds self-centered, too bad, 8000 hits & 100 reviews (almost all good) I think I am doing something right.**

 **I thank my usual suspects: MCZ, Dragon-Uprising, DragonMaster000, HolyCross9, and now the newest followers V SxC, Folwood, Gameguy95, Slipe, Meowstic Luvva** **...holy crap...** **Xbox gamer, Robertmaden00, and a host of guests and anonymous people who took time to say thank you to me.**

 **So, lets have some fun, and move this story to it inevitable conclusion...whatever that may be.**

* * *

Chapter 22 Intruder

The sun had dropped below the treeline a moment ago, turning the long shadows of twilight into near total darkness. Now, just the candles that line the streets of Warfang give light, allowing the only imprisoned dragon in the city a chance to stretch his wings. However, this evening he remains within the confines of the Garden of Warfang, enjoying the company of his new friend.

Most of the time, he would just lay in the center of Nina's Garden of prized sunflowers, taking in the incredible smell of the giant yellow flowers, whose blooms blossom at the same height of his nose. His green eyes, always scanning over the top of his botanical camouflage, making sure not to be seen by those walking by. A simple task, since most are concentrating on the beauty that is the Warfang Gardens, but it also comes in handy that Sycthe can disappear into the shadows, as he is still a dragon that is not to be seen.

At least according to Spyro.

"I do love this garden, Sapphire..." the large dragon's voice is soft as he speaks to his _Sparx_ , whom lays upon the dark black center of a sunflower directly before his face. She smiles for him, however, as Scythe's demeanor changes, the youngest sister of Spyro's other family loses this joyful grin.

"...but I cannot stay cooped up here much longer."

The young insect buzzes up from her spot on the flower and gets directly before Scythe's nose, her tiny hand grasping the top of his left nostril.

"You can't leave." she says with worry, as the blue dragonfly has become close with the gentle giant, following him everywhere he goes like her big brother does to Spyro. Sapphire tightens her grip on his nose, as if to show she is not gonna let him go. "Mom said I'm not allowed to leave the garden without her, at least until my next birthday. So, if you leave now..." She closes her eyes tightly, producing several tears that have accumulated as she comes to the ultimate conclusion.

"...I can't be _your_ dragonfly."

Scythe places a paw softly on the tip of his nose, hugging the youngster gently against him.

"I didn't mean I was leaving tonight, Sweetie." he remarks with a bit of humor in his voice, quickly getting the young dragonfly's eyes to reopen and focus on him. She holds her elation, seeing a tear in Scythe's eye.

"Then why are you crying too?"

The question makes him smile, though Sapphire cannot see it, however, his answer allows her to finally calm down.

"Because my little friend thinks I would leave without her."

"I wanna go, but I have to wait another..."

"Three and a half months." Scythe finishes her thought, putting a wide smile on Sapphire's face as the large dragon has already remembered when her birthday is, and when her mother said she could go outside the garden on her own.

"I don't think that's too long to wait for a _best_ friend."

Sapphire once again smashes into his nose, hugging Scythe as hard as she can, while he finishes this thought.

"I love you...Brother."

The words melt the big dragon's heart, though the last part is kinda confusing to him.

"I love you too, though I'm not really your _brother,_ Sapphire..." he says, again keeping the humorous tone in his voice, not wanting to upset her. "...I mean, I know your mom has practically adopted me like Spyro, but I am not actually a part of your family."

The young girl gives Scythe a very creepy smile.

"That's not what I meant..." she says with a confident voice, then looks to the right and to the left before lowering to a whisper. "...I know something that no one else knows."

Scythe is quickly intrigued, and as such, looks around himself, making sure the coast is clear.

"What is it that you know?" he asks with a silly voice that always makes her laugh, however, this time she just stares at him.

"This is serious, Sycthe...if I tell you, and someone tells Spyro, he is not gonna be happy with me, and I don't wanna make my big brother mad."

She looks around again, making sure none of her biological siblings are around to hear her spill the beans about what she saw earlier today while hovering just over her big brother's balcony.

"Spyro is crafting a ring from an ancestral crystal and is gonna use that to ask your sister to be his mate." she says so nonchalantly that it takes a second for it to register, more so as Sapphire finishes her point with the same easy tone in her voice

"Soooo... when he does that...you will be my brother...right?"

Scythe shakes his head for a second, then a smile finally crosses his muzzle.

"I think that _would_ make you my little sister...in a way." he remarks with an unsure tone, knowing he would not technically be her brother, but Scythe plays along with the young dragonfly, making her smile even wider.

"Well then...I guess I definitely can't leave until I watch my sister get married..." he says with a grin, then pauses dramatically and gives Sapphire a somewhat cold expression.

"Oh wait...I can't be seen in public."

Sapphire frowns as well, as she knows her big adopted brother is the reason her new best friend has been cramped up in the Warfang Garden.

"I should go ask my Mom when this stupid punishment is gonna end, cause its not fair!" she argues to herself, looking at Scythe and seeing only the nicest dragon she knows. "You don't deserve to be stuck here in the garden all the time!"

"Easy, my little friend..." he replies calmly to her slight tantrum. "...I am not punished, and I can leave whenever I wish. Your brother simply asked me to lay low, until he can convince the public that Cynder is not evil."

Scythe quickly pauses his words, hearing footfalls coming down the cobblestone path to his left. With his expert use of Shadow power, he darkens the area surrounding him, allowing his black and red frame to blend into the increasing darkness of twilight. He waits quietly as three of Warfang's citizens cut through the garden, taking the scenic route to cross this section of the city.

The pair wait for a few moment, as this family of drakes take their time to pass, looking around at the many splendors of the garden. The group force the large Shadow dragon to remain perfectly still, as they stare at the beautiful Sunflowers that sway before him.

They finally walk off slowly after getting their fill of this section of the garden's beauty, allowing Scythe to continue on with his biggest issue.

"I just don't know if I can stay hidden that long."

"You may not have too for much longer."

Nina's voice startles both Scythe and Sapphire to look up.

"Mom!" the young dragonfly cries out, suddenly feeling uneasy in her skin, as her mother stares her down. "How long have you..."

"Long enough to be upset with you, Sweetie." She says with a smug grin, lowering down from the tree she had been sitting for the last few minutes, watching her youngest daughter bond with Cynder's brother. Her condescending voice tells Sapphire, her mother is not really angry, just disappointed.

"I especially liked the part when you admitted to spying on your big brother."

The tiny blue dragonfly turns white as a ghost, recalling the conversation she had only a minute ago, and how angry Spyro would be if he knew she had spied on him.

Nina can see disappointment fill her daughter's face and smiles as wide as she can, after passing her daughter's line of sight, knowing her entire biological family has that strong of a bond with the child she and her husband adopted.

"And as for you!" Nina remarks, her voice suddenly becoming strict while addressing Scythe, causing him to flinch a bit. His eyes show a good amount of fear to the tiny insect that once burrowed into his right nostril, and he quickly points a single talon at himself.

"What did I do, Ma'am.?"

Nina says nothing, pausing to stare coldly at the Shadow dragon, then slowly she moves her eyes to focus on the headless bloom to Scythe's immediate left.

The black dragon also turns his eyes to the side and quickly notices the flower he devoured fifteen minutes earlier. He gives her a very cheeky grin, then with a swipe of his paw, claws the stalk from the ground and tosses it out of her view in a single motion.

"I don't see anything!"

Sapphire's giggling breaks her mother's hard stare, as this big black ominous looking dragon continues to act so foolish. A smile quickly crosses Nina's face, as these actions remind her of the young purple whelping she raised.

"Well... I better not see it again...understand me, young dragon!"

Nina simply buzzes off after making Scythe feel smaller than her, and for a moment, he is reminded of another women who could make him feel this way. He looks up at Sapphire, whom has a proud smile on her face, watching her mom handle an adult dragon.

"Okay...maybe you're right about possibly being my sister..." Scythe smiles and returns his eyes to the little insect who has shown him nothing but kindness, after burrowing into his nose, and proudly watches Nina fly off to another part of her garden. "...cause your mother reminds me a lot of my mother."

The green dragonfly's smile only increases hearing these complimenting words, however, as Flash suddenly enters her view, flying erratically fast and calling her name, Nina's grins gets wider.

"What is it?" she asks with excitement, waiting impatiently as her husband takes a moment to catch his breath. She knows where he was, as her husband has the same talent most insects have in a room of dragons, being able to hide in plain sight.

"The Guardians... have called... an emergency session!" he replies, his joyful tone only hindered by his loss of breath. He looks over at Scythe, whom has taken his feet and is now stepping over to hear the conversation.

"They will be making a decree, my big friend." he pauses again, taking a deep breath and putting on his best smile.

"They will be absolving your sister of all crimes done while under Malefor's control."

* * *

Staring up at the stars, trying to contemplate the Universe in all its glory, Brazin begins realizing how small he is in the grand scheme of things. And as much as these thoughts continue helping his ability to understand his place in the world, the Earth dragon is unable to convey that to his new friend, Cyrus.

Still hindered by alcohol, the normally rock-solid drake struggles to hold his body steady, or produce a coherent thought.

"I think we need something..." he says, then pauses, realizing he cannot remember the word he wanted to use. His dancing pupils come back down from the heavens and focus on the black dragoness sitting across from him, hoping to recall the idea he just had. "...Ummm, you know, to keep everybody from taking a swing at her...every time they walk by."

"Do you mean a law?" Cyrus answers and Brazin snaps his fingers.

"That's it! A _law_!" He barks loudly, then slaps the shoulder of the young dragon beside him.

"The _Cynder_ Law!"

The Shadow dragoness lowers her head, as the thought of a law to protect her sounds absurd and self centered. However, as Terrador is woken by this outburst, he answers the question with the same disdain for such a law.

"That would be pointless..." he argues, staring the intoxicated dragon down, and showing his anger for being disturbed from his slumber, again. "...just like asking you to be quiet."

"I could torch the vein of sulfur he's lying upon..." Oswald adds, then closes his eyes again as he tries to go back to sleep. "...but that might make more noise than his mouth."

"The Elite Guard would not be able to protect Cynder every hour of the day, as Spyro himself has been unable to do the same." the head Guardian replies, ignoring his friend's comment the best he can, though he does show the beginnings of a smile. However, being the rock solid leader he is, Terrador remains focused and finishes his point.

"A law would basically proclaim Cynder guilty, and the attacks would increase. In my opinion, the only thing that would stop this is a decree from all eight Guardians, separating the dragon known as the Terror of the Sky from Cynder."

The purple dragon, still feeling the affects of two, or more, cocktails, grasped Cynder's paw after seeing her head lower. He quickly agrees with Terrador loudly, startling the one he loves with his outburst.

"YEAH!"

Even Spyro shows embarrassment to the sound of his voice, as this thought was to remain inside his head. Everyone turns to look at him, including a now fully woken Oswald.

"Sorry." he remarks with a slight grin, then takes a moment to clear his mind of the influence and say what he means a bit softer.

"I don't want Cynder to feel like she is in a prison. And if she were surrounded by guards all day, who themselves may have vengeance on their minds." Spyro squeezes her paw as it begins to tremble, feeling her pain as strong as she does. The slightly toasted dragon then says what he believes he must do

"I would rather leave the city and live where no one could find her."

Cynder keeps her head low, as this too is not what she wants.

"And what about your family, Spyro? I don't want to take you from them."

"Don't worry Cynder.. _.I'm_ not going anywhere." Sparx remarks from his spot by Spyro's horn. He flies down to the tip of the black dragoness' nose, showing her a very wide grin

"No matter what you try to do to get rid of me."

The dark dragoness gives a snort of laughter, encasing the insect in a chilling mist of her shadow power.

He shivers there for a second, then shakes his no.

"You gotta be _colder_ than that."

Hearing the pure sarcastic tone in Sparx's voice, a small smile returns to Cynder's face, allowing Spyro to feel a little better. However, before she can open her mouth to continue arguing against leaving Warfang, La Rue pops her head out of the hole she dug for herself. Everybody stares at the old Manweresmall, whom now leaps out into the open, wearing nothing but her fur.

She takes a very pronounced sniff of the air, then turns to her left.

"Ummm, La Rue! What are you..."

"SHHHH!"

The old Manwersmall's tiny hand is up in the air to help silence Sparx. She then returns her nose to the left and once again takes a very pronounced sniff.

"Do you really need me to be quiet while you _sniff_ around."

"No." She simply replies, taking another very long inhale through her nostrils, hoping to sort the faint smell she caught from the pungent stink of sulfur that's all around.

"Then why did you tell me to be quiet you crazy old coot!"

La Rue turns her head slowly to Sparx, showing the anger in her eyes.

"So you don't scare the kidnapper away with your loud outbursts, Stupid!" She barks, and suddenly a sound is heard by a sensitive pair of ears.

"HEY! YOU!" Hunter barks, seeing movement in the woods in the direction La Rue was sniffing.

Within a second his bow is drawn and an arrow is loosed from it. It strikes the tree just next to the shadowy creature, spooking him to begin running.

"STOP!" the Cheetah warrior yells, taking his first step in that direction and only increasing speed with each step.

"I SAID STOP!" Hunter repeats, now focusing in on the black shadow that has taken retreat into the thicket.

An arrow, from behind, zips by the pursuing Cheetah's left ear, striking another tree next to the black creature. He changes course again, moving away at a quicker rate of speed. Meadow is then by his protege in a blur of spots, showing the _cheetah-speed_ that Hunter aspires to achieve. However, as fast as the elder Cheetah Warrior is, with a recently broken leg, Meadow can only keep up with the pace this puma is moving. And after only a few seconds of starting this chase, the feline warrior stops short.

He holds Hunter with a balled fist, then listens for movement.

"He is smart..." Meadow whispers, looking to the right as he hears only a faint echo of noise. "...he stopped running the same time you did."

Hunter quickly understands this has become a game of hide and seek and uses one of his best abilities. His eyes are to the ground, hastily finding the trail this intruder left behind. With a gesture of his paw, the younger cat tells his mentor he will flank this target from the left.

And with a slight nod of his head, Meadow approves of this action.

"Wait." a third voice silently remarks, and both Hunter and Meadow are startled as Spyro practically appears from out of thin air on their right side.

"What the..."

Spyro's purple paw is over Meadow's mouth faster than he can see it move, making Hunter laugh inside, seeing his mentor is as startled as he was watching Spyro bend time.

"He's _faster_ than both of us Meadow, so maybe we should let him handle this."

Meadow's shock is apparent in his eyes, but still the elder warrior understands their brand new tactical advantage. In fact, as the purple dragon takes his paw away, a wide grin appears on Meadow's face.

Until, of course, Spyro speaks.

"I _would_ chase him down...if I could," Spyro remarks with a slight slur in his voice, then looks at both warriors with a pair of unsure eyes. "but I can't ahhh, really see... _straight_."

Meadow shakes his head, and though he shows a disgusted expression, inside he is laughing.

"He's about a hundred yards to your immediate left..." Meadow whispers, suddenly seeing the puma move from behind one tree to another. "...but I don't want you to go that way."

Spyro now shakes his head, wondering why he should go elsewhere. However, as Meadow stomps his foot and shows Spyro a look of anger, the purple dragon returns his focus.

"Listen...if you're still too drunk, you may accidentally spook him." the elder cheetah remarks, then subtly points towards a dense section of thicket, where the black cat could easily disappear. "Just keep him from going deeper into the swamp, and Hunter and I shall round him up without harming him."

With a nod of his head, Spyro stops time and disappears from sight, quickly taking position on the path that Meadow asked him to guard. Shockingly, this action causes the intruder to do the complete opposite of what Meadow had thought, as the puma starts charging the purple dragon.

"SPYRO!" the intruder yelps with an eager tone

"Oh no!"

The words spill from both Meadow and Spyro's mouths, as both are suddenly confused about what actions to take.

The elder Cheetah warrior, with his bow drawn, hesitates to loose his arrow, knowing he needs information from this puma. He heard La Rue mention she smelled the kidnapper close by, and killing him could mean certain death for Spyro's brother too. However, this creature is charging the Hero of Avalar, who himself is not one hundred percent, and the thought of him killing Spyro is almost to much to bear.

On the other hand, still uncertain of his abilities, Spyro decides to make the only feasible choice in his mind, and bends time once again.

This causes the black cat to stop short, confused by where the purple dragon went, and quickly he panics.

"My master wants..." he begins saying, then suddenly feels a tremendous impact to the back of his head. His body tightens up uncontrollably, and he turns with shock to see Spyro's paw hovering over where he felt the sting.

 _...to give you back your brother._

These last few words are what he wanted to say, but come out of his mouth as pure gibberish. The black cat then collapses to the ground unconscious.

"HA HA... I got him!" Spyro barks, standing over the dazed puma, a smug grin on his face.

The purple dragon sits down on his hindquarters, crossing his arms over his chest as Hunter and Meadow converge.

"And you thought I couldn't handle this on my own." he remarks so condescendingly that Meadow gives him a sour look, that is until Spyro finishes his little speech.

"Well...I'm not as think as you drunk I am."

Both cats pause to stare at Spyro, whom continues smiling like an idiot, until he realizes what he said.

"I mean drunk as you think...oh you know what I meant!"

"Of course we do." Hunter returns with the same cheesy smile and condescending tone Spyro had a moment ago. The younger cat reaches down and grasps the unconscious puma around his midsection, and with a mighty hoist, lifts the dead weight up on to his shoulder.

"I just hope we can get some information out of him before daybreak, or else this guy is not going to be helpful to us at all."

* * *

 **I think Spyro needs some coffee.**

 **Short and sweet, more to come...stay tuned**


	24. A Scythe for Sore Eyes

**Woo hoo...I'm cranking out the chapters again. I think cause I finally have an idea of what I want to do. It only took 23 chapters :)**

 **A big thank you to my new reviewers...Dragon by Heart, Slipe, Folwood, V-SxC, and of course my regulars...MCZ, Dragon-Uprising, and HolyCross9.**

* * *

Chapter 23 A Scythe for Sore Eyes

"I need to follow along." Spyro had said before leaving, compelled to chase his little brother's kidnapper, and drawing a terrified look from his love.

He knew exactly what her fear was about without her saying it, and normally, Spyro would never leave Cynder alone in public, even with the Master Guardian to watch her.

However, this time it was different.

His younger brother, Cyrus, quickly took Cynder's paw in his own, stopping the black dragon from trembling.

"I got her, Spyro." he said confidently, then winked to the purple dragon giving him the okay to chase down the kidnapper "Now go get _our_ little brother back."

The purple dragon bent time at that moment, leaving without a trace. And now, after only a few seconds alone, the Shadow dragoness is regretting this decision, as Brazin begins staring in her direction with an odd look.

Cynder becomes more disturbed as the Earth dragon starts looking around, as if to see whether or not he is being watched. His eyes then return to her and a cold chill shoots down her spine as he asks

"Where'd Spyro go?" his voice is genuinely filled with confusion, as the large drake once again looks around for the purple hero.

"Damn!" he remarks, standing up and padding over to get a closer look at where Spyro was just sitting. "He was here only a second ago and then _whoosh_!"

Cynder begins to tremble again, as Brazin has never been this close to her while drunk, however, she can tell he is not going to take a swing. He seems completely at his wits end, wondering how Spyro just vanished into thin air.

His dancing eyes return to the black dragoness, still showing a great deal of the intoxicating effects his bottle of spirits produced, as well as the confusion of what just happened.

"I didn't know he can run that fast?"

"He can influence Time, slowing it down so he can move faster than you can see." Cyrus answers, as Cynder is still tense from the large brown dragon's position right beside her.

Brazin suddenly shows a touch of anger in his confusion, adding to the tension Cynder feels.

"Can he do that in battle too?"

Cyrus goes to answer this question again, having heard the story first hand of how his brother defeated the ape General, Gaul, with this remarkable power, however, Brazin grasps his friend's mouth, and holds it shut.

"NO! I'm asking Cynder...why has he never used this power against me?"

Cynder lowers her head, cowering further.

"He doesn't want to cause more pain to those I hurt..." she replies softly, finally raising her head to look the large dragon eye to eye. "...and if he injured you in battle, he believes it would just add to the anguish I caused."

Brazin pauses for a moment, again contemplating her words in his intoxicated state, then shakes his head. He is annoyed at what he has heard, hearing her take the blame by using the word _I_ , however, he also sees an opportunity to prove a theory. A smug grin suddenly crosses his face, and the Earth dragon decides to take his first steps in healing a wound that has scarred both dragons.

"If that's what you believe... then you are a fool."

He begins laughing with a sinister tone, stepping away from the dark dragon as if she had the plague.

"...I should have known better, he must think you are guilty too." he says smugly, turning his smiling face back to show the black dragoness his new found joy. "Why else would he not attack me with his full strength, if he didn't feel one hundred percent about his actions."

Cyrus is dumbfounded by the comment, but Cynder is struck in the chest by the hardest impact she has ever felt.

"Why would you say that?"

Her voice is filled with pain, suddenly hearing Spyro my have doubts about her, and Brazin notices this. He quickly adds to those doubts, purposely trying to egg the black dragoness on.

"He don't trust you Cynder." he replies, again showing a deep resolve in his now very steady eyes. "In fact...I'll bet he thinks you're still working with Malefor."

"Stop it! " Cynder cries, and this brings Cyrus to his feet.

"Dude! Easy! You're still drunk!" he remarks, stepping between Brazin and the dragon he is supposed to be protecting. Even if this not a physical threat, Spyro's brother feels a duty to step up. He turns the larger dragon away from Cynder, so he cannot look at her, then gets face to face with Brazin.

"Don't do this." the young dragon begs, hoping to talk sense to his new friend.

"Do what? Tell her the truth?" his voice becomes very creepy, however, as he winks at Cyrus, the young dragon smartly remains silent.

However, that don't mean everyone remains silent.

"What garbage are you trying to spew now?" Terrador asks, getting to his feet as well, knowing the middle brother of Spyro is no match for Brazin. He positions himself close enough to defend Cynder if it becomes necessary, as this conversation quickly begins to show signs of going badly.

"I'm just calling a spade, a spade..." Brazin remarks with a very intoxicated voice, looking at his mentor with a smug grin. He then turns to Cynder and the smile drops from his face. "...or should I say...a killer, a killer."

Cynder lowers her head down and Brazin becomes angrier. He can see her normal reaction to his taunts, and quickly the brown dragon thinks this ploy is not gonna work, until.

"But... I didn't kill anyone." she whispers softly, not wanting to intensify the situation by disagreeing angrily, yet this is what Brazin has been hoping to hear. A smile crosses his muzzle for the blink of an eye, as Cynder finally denies what was done by the Terror of the Sky.

 _Good Girl_ he says to himself, then looks over at his mentor. And while Cynder's head is still lowered, he gives a little wink to signal his intentions to a good friend.

Terrador understands as fast as Cyrus that Brazin is up to something and reluctantly plays along.

"You still believe she is responsible for..."

"Of course she's responsible!" Brazin barks, cutting off Terrador with his angered tone, and bringing Cynder's now tear-filled eyes up from the ground.

She can see the hatred that has been absent for the entire day, a hatred that burns deep inside, and knowing nothing she can do will ever make it go away. However, regardless of the pain she feels, Cynder gets the strength to keep her eyes locked on his.

"But that wasn't me. You said so yourself...so stop saying that!" the black dragoness' voice becomes increasingly hostile, as the large Earth mover begins taunting her with his words. It is damn hard for Brazin to keep an angered scowl, as his pride in Cynder's response is overwhelming to him. And though he can hear a bit of trepidation in her words, he sees no doubt in her eyes.

"What!? That _you_ killed my brother, Cynder!?" he continues while taking a step closer and getting his voice to sound a bit angrier. Brazin's claws extend out, digging into the brittle stone beneath his paws, showing more and more aggression to the dark dragoness.

Cyrus can see the look of desperation fill Cynder's eyes and he grasps Brazin by his shoulder. He thought the Earth dragon was faking, but even he cannot tell from this act of aggression. However, as he easily brushes the small dragon off and gets nose to nose with her, threatening her like he always does, something inside the shadow dragoness snaps.

"You took him away from me, You bitch!" He yells with rage and before Brazin can blink his eyes, Cynder's paw is across his face. The impact rattles several teeth in the Earth dragon's mouth, knocking him off his feet and onto the ground.

That quickly, the charade is over.

Terrador and Cyrus are between the now enraged dragoness and Brazin, whom continues trying to return to his feet with great difficulty. However, the Earth dragon's eyes, still a little unfocused from the alcohol, and the impact, witness the proof he needs, watching Terrador struggle to hold Cynder back.

"I'm tired of this!" She cries, her emotions a mess, and out in the open for all to see. "I don't know what he wants from me anymore!?"

Brazin begins laughing at this moment and again confusion fills her mind.

"An apology would be nice, Cynder...I'm a drunken idiot, remember?" he sarcastically remarks, his voice now showing how sober he really is, especially after having his head knocked off his shoulders.

He stands up before Cynder and a wide smile crosses his face.

"However... Since you've already apologized to me, like a thousand times, and for something you _didn't_ do..." Brazin pauses, then reaches into his mouth and retrieves a large piece of his lower right fang. "...I guess I can forgive you for breaking my tooth."

Both Cyrus and Terrador finally calm down as their friend shows his true intentions, and now, his toothless smile. He hands the incisor to Cynder, whom shows embarrassment in her eyes for striking him so hard, again proving she is who Spyro and Cyrus said she is.

"She's not as _harmless_ as you claimed, Spyro!" he remarks sarcastically, then turns around to stare at the purple dragon he had noticed running back into the camp. Brazin pads right up to the powerful hero, who heard the commotion he and Cynder were making.

"Next time I try busting her chops... I'll be ready to duck."

Spyro looks over at Cynder, who seems tense and confused, yet perfectly unharmed. His eyes then return to Brazin, whose smile is now permanently glued upon his muzzle, as well as permanently marred.

"Be happy she didn't use her _claws_." the purple dragon remarks sarcastically, then reaches out his paw and takes Brazin's arm. He shakes it as if he's never met this dragon and condescendingly asks

"So... ummm. Who are _you_?"

Spyro looks over Brazin's shoulder, inspecting the large dragon's scale pattern and wings, making sure this is still the brown and black Earth breather he thought he was.

"You look like that annoying dragon that hates my girlfriend and myself, but I'm not sure."

"Always a Smart ass you are." Brazin pulls Spyro chest to chest, embracing him tightly. "I thank you for not seriously hurting me when you could have."

The large dragon releases his new friend and looks to his better half.

"You were right! I would have blamed her for any pain _you_ caused me, Spyro..." Brazin pauses to hold his emotions, but finds it impossible as he recalls all the hateful remarks he made toward Cynder, and now realizing how unwarranted those words were.

"...as I blamed her for what _Malefor_ had done."

* * *

The smile on his face is practically irremovable, hearing positive things said about his sister, and not just from the old gray drake in the center of the street.

"Did you hear that, Scythe?" Sapphire whispers in his ear, as both remain quietly observing from within a dark shadowy tree that skirts the main avenue up to the palace.

"That old lady doesn't blame Cynder for what happened."

Scythe says nothing, knowing his whispers could be heard by the silenced crowd below, so he just nods his head very softly to acknowledge her. However, as the young dragonfly watches several tears develop, while he is smiling, Sapphire knows her dragon is happier than Cheetah child with a ball of yarn.

"Well, I guess the decree is unnecessary." Flash quips, as he and Nina hover to Scythe's left side, his insect-sized voice as low their little daughter's.

"She needs to die!" Is suddenly shouted from below, drawing everyone's attention down to the orange and green dragon who now takes control of the conversation in the street. He starts spewing hatred with every word, going on about the Terror of the Sky and her crimes, making Flash quickly revise his statement.

"OK...Maybe I was wrong about that."

Scythe's eyes focus hard upon this dragon, as he continues talking trash about Cynder, knowing full well this is the same angry drake who weeks earlier scarred his little sister's chest with a sharp rock. They continue watching as this orange beast gets nose to nose with the senior citizen, who was publicly proclaiming her forgiveness for Cynder, stunned that she will not back down.

"You are foolish if you think Cynder's the same dragon that killed your father!" the elder barks back, as this Earth dragon has encroached upon her space far enough. She actually gets physical, pushing the large stone breather away from her, causing a slight riot as several other dragons come to her aid.

"This is gonna get ugly fast." Sapphire remarks, as the confrontation on the main road becomes more and more hostile.

"And the sad thing is they will probably blame Cynder for this too."

Flash completely agrees with his daughter by simply nodding his head, but notices his wife has frozen solid.

"Honey?"

Nina does not answer him, as her focus has moved elsewhere.

"What are you thinking about _doing_ , Scythe?"

Her question catches both Flash and the black dragon off guard.

"Nothing." Scythe replies after a stunned pause, not understanding how she could read his mind.

Nina flies directly in front of the green eyes of Scythe, taking his focus from the argument below, to the one that is about to begin directly before him.

"Don't you lie to me, I'll smack you silly, Young dragon!"

Scythe balks, suddenly feeling butterflies in his stomach, and a certain nervousness he has not felt in about fifteen years, or the last time his mother scolded him. It unhitches the large dragon as this feeling of fear is something he was not ready for.

Nina then points at the orange drake, who is now being restrained from the old dragoness that just blasted him in the face with a heavy gust of wind.

"You were thinking of going down there...weren't you?"

Scythe balks, as this tiny dragonfly is once again inside his brain, though this time not physically but mentally.

"I was not gonnn..."

The green dragonfly smacks her hand down across the tip of Scythe's narrow muzzle, stopping his words and sending a simple pain to correct him.

"I said, I'll smack you silly if you lie to me, young dragon." She grumbles adamantly, startling Scythe even further as he finds himself shutting his mouth tightly.

Nina waits for him to settle, allowing the stunned dragon to take a breath, like she would do with Spyro when he got upset.

"You don't realize how well I can read a dragon's eyes..." she begins saying, then calms Scythe further with a smug grin. "...I know you were gonna do something stupid."

Nina smiles wider as the green irises she stares into move up and left, showing the tell tale signs that Scythe is searching for an answer.

"Exactly!" Nina says, and his eyes are back on her.

"You are as bad as my Spyro is at lying."

Scythe lowers his head, however, before he can feel bad about his thoughts and actions, a small hand is upon the tip of his nose again. It staggers the black dragon, how comforting Nina's touch is to the spot she smacked, and again his eyes are back to her.

"Tell me what your thinking about, Sweetie...I want to know if there is anything I can do to help you." She says and Scythe is comforted even further, hearing the soft tone of a mother's care that he has missed for so long.

However, He takes a moment to answer, knowing his thoughts may be considered _stupid_.

"I was thinking, if I attack that jerk, then just maybe..." the black dragon pauses as his idea now sounds completely stupid, confessing it to this little dragonfly whom he holds in great respect. "...they would believe I was the Terror of the Sky..."

Nina holds Scythe's words with another soft tap to his nose, and then oddly, a tiny little kiss.

"You're a sweet little dragon." Nina remarks, a tear coming to her eye as she knows what this big brother is already thinking about doing.

"You're going to try and take all the blame for what your sister is accused of."

Scythe's eyes are back up to hers and he is completely stunned seeing a look of content in Nina's expression. However, he is still embarrassed to nod his head up and down.

"Ahh! As much as I'd love to see you team him apart... It won't work, big fella." Flash replies, as he can see several distinct differences in the siblings, however, the most important reason is not visual.

"Cynder has apologized to the families of those she killed, bringing up specific instances, and individuals, that she was forced to hunt down...and that is something that cannot be explained away."

Scythe's eyes change in a heart beat, then quickly focus on Nina.

"So, the dragon I should be tearing apart is _Spyro_." he says, his voice easily understood as sarcastic, however, watching the green dragonfly's reaction, Scythe explains his last remark with a less sarcastic tone. "He's the one that should be protecting her, _aggressively_ , if necessary."

Nina lowers her head, as does Flash, embarrassed at how their son backs down away from confrontations. Both bite their tongue, knowing exactly why Spyro has remained docile, hoping not to hurt anyone that attacks his love.

"He can't fight back..." Sapphire remarks with anger, as she is tired of keeping quiet. "... _Cynder_ won't let him!"

Scythe's eyes are to her, and even as young as she is, the blue dragonfly knows her next words are important to keep this friendship.

"I watched your sister yell at my brother for an hour cause he defended her physically." Sapphire smiles, remembering the first day her big brother returned home from defeating Malefor, and the joy that filled her heart watching the purple dragon hug her mom. Her smile lasts only a moment, or the length of time it took for someone to start yelling their hatred toward the other hero in the group.

"He knocked that jerk off his feet with one swat of his paw." she says, pointing at the large orange Earth dragon that continues whipping the crowd below into a frenzy.

"Your sister threatened to leave him if he defended her so strongly, saying this is what she deserved for her crimes."

Scythe shows disbelief in his eyes, however, as the young dragonfly cross her arms, his doubt starts to fade. He then looks to the one he has put a great deal of trust in, and her eyes and inflections speak the same volumes as her daughter's.

"Why would she do that?" he says, shaking his head, trying to comprehend the reason for Cynder to take the blame for what the Terror of the Sky did. And having first hand knowledge of both dragonesses, as he was in Warfang to kill the evil beast that took his father, only one thought comes to his mind.

"She was never _that_ dragon!"

"GET TO YOUR HOMES! THE CITY IS UNDER ATTACK!"

The call terrifies Scythe, believing his voice has carried down to the street, and that someone has noticed a dragon that looks like the Terror of the Sky is just sitting in a tree off the main terrace. However, as the armored guard flies by, barking his warning, the group realizes the threat is elsewhere.

"Look, its the Fire Guardian." Sapphire suddenly remarks, pointing up at the black and orange chested dragon that lifts off the balcony above them, and now hovers over the dispersing crowd below. "I wonder who he's talking to."

"His brother, probably." Flash remarks with a sarcastic tone, knowing the other black and orange fire dragon is the only one who can translate his sibling's gruff voice.

Nina and his daughter give the big blue dragonfly a sour grin, yet Scythe is humored by this comment. However, as the large dragoness that bore Spyro takes off from the same balcony, Cynder's brother becomes all business, especially when he sees what they've begun heading for.

"I think I better follow them and find out what the hell _that_ is?" he remarks with concern, as his eyes come across a large flying object coming down from the northern mountain range, still bathed in the lowering sun.

"Mommy can I..." Sapphire begins her 'ask for anything voice' and is immediately she is met with two loud angry replies of he same word.

"NO!" Nina and Flash have also noticed this colossal mass heading down towards the city and take actions to ensure their daughter does not disobey them. They position themselves between Scythe and Sapphire, however, the Shadow dragon gives his friend no chance to make her own decision, disappearing into the darkness of the late evening's shade, leaving the tree with no trail that she can follow.

He can hear her begin crying as he leaves, but the big dragon knows this is no situation for a young dragonfly.

 _Sorry Sapphire...but I cannot let you get hurt._ he says to himself, jumping into the Shadow Realm to speed away without the troublesome obstacles that block other creatures, like trees and buildings. Scythe moves unseen at an incredibly high rate of speed, reappearing several hundred yards away in a dark courtyard only a few seconds later.

 _Your brother would probably try to kill me._

The Shadow dragon takes a moment in this very dark area, plotting a route that he can take towards the mountain. He must make sure not to reenter the Real World in a bad place, like in front of the nearly dozen Royal Guards that have taken positions by the North Gate. Or even worse, reappearing within the solid granite wall itself, which would mean certain death.

Kelvin flies over his head at this moment, followed by his brother and Spyro's mother.

"And I can't let _her_ get hurt either." he says to himself and again is quickly gone in a flash of black mystical wisps.

Rushing as fast as he can in one direction, Scythe holds himself in the Shadow Realm for almost ten seconds, draining nearly every bit of magic he has stored within. It allows him to zip through a Cheetah Warrior's dwelling, three large oak trees, the entire North Square filled with guards, and finally a thirty five foot thick solid granite wall.

Without any repercussions of running through these solid objects, Scythe emerges completely unharmed in the open valley between the mountains and the north gate. He uses the last bit of magic he has to camouflage himself after only a brief appearance, making sure the gathering Manweresmall army don't spot him.

Scythe makes a bee line for the first cluster of magic-bearing gems he lays eyes on. He barrels into the monolith of green glass-like stone, shattering it into a thousand shards that quickly adhere to his frame, allowing Scythe to absorb their magic giving power. He disappears into the shadows again, using this power in spurts to traverse through the jagged rocks that jut up from the mountain face.

In no time at all, he is halfway up the slope, and is finally able to stop rushing along. He then looks up at the approaching threat and is startled to recognize exactly what manner of beast this is.

"By the Ancestors...It's a colossus!"

He looks back at the North wall, now almost a mile behind, watching as the tiny Manweresmall army readies the rampart tower's main cannon.

 _NO... You idiots!_ The sudden flash of the cannon firing, startles Scythe even further.

"ARE THEY COMPLETELY BLIND!"

The black dragon knows he has only seconds before a large ball of solid marble impacts the mountain, or worse, it's intended target. So, without fearing the thought of being seen, Scythe is in the air.

As the thunderous sound of the cannon reaches the mountain, Kooresh turns his head away from the flying lesson he is enjoying on his back. His eyes quickly locking on the smoke rising from the north gate cannon, and the projectile of stone he can hear breaking the sound barrier as it gets closer.

At the same time, he notices the black dragon that rises from the mountain he is gliding down.

"By the ancestors!" he cries out, as a whirlpool of Shadow magic appears directly before him.

"PULL UP!" Scythe barks with fear in his voice, hoping the large dragon can maneuver from the path of this cannonball, as he is unsure his trick will work on something moving at this speed.

The colossal drake heeds his word in an instant, lifting himself nearly hundred feet with one violent thrust of his wings.

Scythe is batted down by the force of Kooresh's sudden course correction, though he remains in the air long enough to watch his magic trick succeed. The cannonball enters the cold realm of the Shadows, beginning a new journey across the vast nothingness that will never come to end.

A smile fills Scythe's face watching his plan work perfectly, and also seeing the huge dragon holding his position after the fast maneuver, however, that smile fades as he watches the colossus fumble to grasp for the small blue object that is flung from his back.

"BLAKE!" Kooresh barks with fear, as the young dragon plummets to Avalar, unable to correct his flight path after the unforeseen maneuver made by the large dragon.

"SHALE! HELP!" he cries, but she also has no chance to catch up to the young whelpling before he hits the hard granite surface of the north mountain.

Scythe can hear both children scream with true fear and in an instant he is into the Shadow Realm. He emerges a fraction of a second later directly in Blake's path.

"Gotcha!" he grunts, absorbing all the force of the little whelpling's body.

Blake is completely mortified, believing he just died, not feeling the painful impact that must have killed him instantly. However, hearing Scythe's voice, his eyes finally open wide and find a familiar face.

"Scythe!?" his little body contorts in the large dragon's paws, spinning around to face his savior. His eyes remain right on his, showing the joy he has to be in a friendly grasp.

"Wow...Are you a sight for sore eyes!"

* * *

 **It should get funny from here on out, so enjoy the ride.**


	25. Am I Dreaming, Or am I Still Drunk

**Only one or two more chapters before I put my obsession with Spyro to bed...I think. However, as you will see with this one, these chapters are going to be fun. I truly hope you have enjoyed what I have written as much as I have enjoyed writing it.**

 **I say thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter; Not Marge, HolyCross9, Gameguy95, Folwod, MCZ, Dragon-Uprising, and Micah Weir. As well as the many repeat reviewers I have had over the 4 years that I have been writing on FF. I may come back to the purple dragon someday for a one shot, but I know this story is the last full length story I do with Spyro.**

* * *

Chapter 24 Am I Dreaming...or am I Drunk

"I am Sycthe...and I was hoping this moment would have been at a different time and place." he casually says, staring down nearly a dozen of Warfang's Armed Guard, as well as the Fire Guardian himself. His eyes find the one that asked the question, as Kelvin's voice was not understood until translated by the more timid and shorter version of the black and orange dragon. "Tell your big brother that I am not here to hurt anyone."

"My...ears...work...fine." Kelvin returns with an attitude to the black and red chested dragon who looks just like the one who attacked him years earlier.

"Yes... my _sister_ told me what she did to you all those years ago and how sorry she was that she took your ability to speak...normally"

Scythe brings his tail around towards Kelvin, reminiscent in the way Cynder had done when she slashed his throat, however, without the three foot blade, Kelvin shows no fear from Scythe's simple tail movement.

In fact, Kelvin shows no fear at all in his eyes, only curiosity. A smile fills the black and red dragon's face as he sees the reaction he was hoping for, calmness, and quickly Scythe proves he is also not one to fear.

"But she told me you became a better _listener_ than most, and now, I hope you will listen to what I have to say."

Kelvin's paw moves up and down, gesturing all the guards, that continue to gather closer, to lower their spears and blades. Though they remain alert.

"I'm...listen...ning."

Scythe also raises a paw as Skylar suddenly steps forward to defend him. Unhappily, she remains quiet, holding the son she lost earlier that morning, and who she witnessed him save only a minute ago. The blue dragoness does show her disdain for the way Kelvin is treating a hero, however, she is understanding of the way the Elite Guard has reacted.

"I have been living here for a week, in the Shadows of the Garden, cause Spyro begged me to remain hidden..." the black dragon remarks, looking around at all the citizens who show him great fear. "...and I can see by everyone's reaction...that maybe he was right."

Kelvin shows a smirk, seeing regret fill the green eyes of this black dragon, and just that quick he understands Scythe is like his little sister.

Humble.

A few grunts are given, his eyes fixed upon Scythe as his brother translates, reading the reaction to a simple question.

"Why did you expose yourself then?" Infurnus asks and without looking away, the black dragon focuses his answer to the Fire Guardian.

"Because I heard the alarm bell and saw _this big thing_ heading down the mountain." he says, gesturing his head at the massive dragon standing beside him. He keeps his paws firmly to the ground, still noticing many of the guards have an anxious look in their eyes.

It's was that exact look in Sapphire's eyes that got the black dragon moving to begin with. He finds her in the crowd, giving the young dragonfly a smile to calm her nerves, as she looks more afraid than he is.

"And I thought my little friend was in danger."

"YOU HAVE NO FRIENDS HERE!" A voice calls out with hatred, drawing several angry reactions, none more angrier or louder than that young dragonfly, who challenges this notion with a fierce display of her emotions.

"YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!" Sapphire yells at the one who spoke out, then takes her place by Scythe's horn.

" _I'M_ HIS FRIEND!" She barks adamantly, crossing her arms like her big brother Sparx would do, especially when standing firm beside a dragon. The young insect puts a wide smile on Mom and Dad's face as she declares her loyalty, again like her big brother did so many years ago.

"HE'S _MY_ DRAGON!"

Scythe smiles, as does Kelvin, whom instantly moves his attention to Kooresh. He can tell there is no threat of danger from the black dragon, as all of his tension faded with the company of his young friend.

"And...who...are...you?"

The colossus bows to the Guardian of Fire, knowing what an honor it is to speak to this dragon.

"My name is Kooresh, Master Guardian Sir, and I do apologize, for this disturbance is all my fault." he says with a great deal of humility. His eyes find the youngsters that have changed his outlook on life in a single day, both showing him the smiles that helped healed an old wound.

"I am the one responsible for kidnapping Blake and his friend Shale." he says, a smile given back to the ones that replenished his spirit with their own.

"I stand here at your mercy."

Kelvin looks at his little brother and gives a very short series of grunts, which produce a snicker of laughter from Infurnus, but are not translated for the group to hear.

"Is there something funny about him begging for forgiveness?" Scythe asks, drawing a look from Kelvin, as his words are almost deciphered perfectly.

"I...wasn't...making...fun...of...him..." he begins to say, a now very aggravated look in his eyes. "I...was...saying...it...is...funny...that...every...thing...is...tur...tur..."

Kelvin stops talking, grasps his throat in pain, and begins choking to pull in oxygen. He looks over at Infurnus, who panics seeing fear in his brother's eyes.

"KELVIN!?" he cries out, as the Fire guardian struggles for breath.

At this moment, Scythe grasps Kelvin by his throat, and before the Elite guard can do a thing to stop him, both dragons disappear into the Shadow Realm.

About fifteen seconds, or an eternity to a younger brother, pass by before both dragons return to the North Square. The elite guard quickly pounce Scythe, taking him into their custody with extreme prejudice.

The younger fire dragon rushes over as well, dropping down to his brother's side in half a heartbeat, however, before Infurnus can even ask if he is alive.

"Release... him! NOW!" The Fire Guardian barks, his voice loud and clear, but still a bit broken. They heed his words quickly and back away from the large black and red dragon, before causing him any real pain.

Kelvin then shivers his way back up onto his hind quarters, and raises a front paw to feel his neck. Only disbelief is seen in his eyes by Infurnus, who quickly hugs his brother.

"Are you okay, Kelvin?"

The youngster's eyes show the same shock, as his older sibling removes the paw from his neck, and places it on his brother to embrace him back.

"Your scar... but that's...impossible."

Infurnus is unable to grasp the concept of what he sees, and begins fumbling to put his thoughts into words, so big brother squeezes him tighter and whispers in his ear.

"I'm fine, _Little Inferno_."

Kelvin struggles to keep his breath as Infurnus tightens his embrace, hearing a voice he hasn't heard in nearly a decade, and a name his brother could no longer say correctly. The large drake then looks at his sudden savior, knowing his life was in jeopardy and gently nods his head.

"Thank you." he says, recalling the odd feeling of Scythe's paw actually penetrating his throat, and the sudden comfort that came as a result. "But I don't understand how you could do that."

A smile fills his face as he reveals his teacher.

"I learned to listen well too... my sister knows things about Shadow magic that I can only dream of."

* * *

"You have got to be kidding me!?" a very annoyed Oswald remarks angrily, staring at the black cat who finally woke up from his impromptu nap. The rage in his eyes is only matched by the relief, hearing that his daughter has probably been returned safely to the city by now, however, his nose still makes him speak his piece.

"So, you're saying I could be at home, holding my baby girl this very minute... But instead, I'm out here with this motley crew, standing on a petrified turd?"

A smirk fills Brazin's face, as Shadow nods his head up and down with the aid of his paw, still holding the knot Spyro left on his noggin. An annoyed Oswald then reaches into the satchel the Earth dragon brought and removes the stone rendering of Cynder's head.

"Then, I guess we don't need this thing anymore." he says, tossing the rock figure over to the dragoness that it looks like. "Why don't you keep it as a memento."

The red drake reaches back into the satchel, removing the bottle of strong spirits, and raises it up to his eyes.

"However, we do need this."

The fire dragon pads over to the group that continues collecting their things for the trip home and sits down by the black puma. He has been nothing but apologetic for his actions, and Oswald hands him the bottle, a grin on his face allowing the nervous black cat to settle down and take it.

"It will help relieve the pain."

Spyro shows his embarrassment, as Shadow has been holding the knot he put on the back of his head since waking ten minutes ago.

"I didn't meant to hit you like that." the purple dragon mentions, as the puma takes a swig of spirits. The upset hero waves a paw when offered the bottle by the one he struck, annoyed that this drink is what caused him to strike the cat so hard.

"Think nothing of it Master Spyro...I deserved _this_ and much more for what I've done today." Shadow gestures to the spot on his head with the brim of the bottle, before handing it back to Oswald.

"Anyone else want this?" the red dragon asks, offering the half empty bottle to anyone who will take it. After no one shows interest, Oswald scorches the rim with a plume of fire, killing off any germs Shadow left behind. He then proceeds to down the remaining portion of the potent potable, drawing a look of shock from both buzzed dragons as Oswald shows no ill effect from doing this.

"So...Shadow is it..." the red drake's voice is a bit more strict, putting the puma in an uncomfortably tense mood again, especially as Oswald's large paw comes down slowly upon his back. He softly pets his black fur while asking a question that is unanswerable. "...why did you take _my_ _daughter_?"

Shadow, knowing that a lie will bring him another impact to the back of his head, decides to tell the truth. However, also knowing that his reason 'to keep her quiet' will not suffice, the black cat is quickly on his feet and in front of the red dragon with his paw extended out.

"Oh! Then you are the one I have wanted to meet, Sir." he grasps Oswald's much larger, talon-wielding paw with both of his and shakes it up and down vigorously.

"I'm so so sorry for taking your daughter, but she left me little choice. Her continued interference would have ruined any chance I had of completing my mission successfully."

The genuine look in his eyes and the sincerity in his words keep the fire breather calmly rested upon his stomach. But what Shadow says next, ensures he will not be beaten to death by a now proud father.

"Shale is, without a doubt, the bravest _four-year-old_ I have ever met."

Shadow looks upon the black dragon holding the stone head of herself, knowing one of the lives Shale saved is hers, as Kooresh's plan was to kill her to incite Spyro. A plan he truly wanted no part of, but was compelled to do for his best friend.

"And, because of her spirit, Cynder will keep her head...on her shoulders..." Shadow smiles as the black dragoness lays the stone sculpture on the ground, then returns his eyes to Oswald. Once again a look of genuine thanks fill the gaze of this humble cat. "...and I will still be able to talk to my best friend tomorrow."

"What does that mean?" Cynder asks, and quickly the black cat obliges with an answer.

"My Master...I mean, My friend, Kooresh, was going to kill you for one reason..." his eyes quickly find the purple dragon. "...to enrage Spyro, so he would kill him."

"Why on Avalar would your friend want to die?" Sparx asks, as his younger brother remains somewhat speechless, however, Spyro's other brother comes alive with his own questions.

"Did you say your friend's name is _Kooresh_?"

Everyone stops packing their stuff and stares at the young dragon, whom seems to be familiar with a name no one else has heard. He puts down his satchel and pads closer to Shadow, asking another question that draws more odd looks.

"Is he an Earth Colossus?"

Shadow's eyes open wide, sizing the blue dragon up.

"How did you know that? You are far too young..."

"My dad would talk about him all the time!" he barks out, his tail wagging enthusiastically as he recalls a memory that involves his father. "He told me he used to live next door to a huge dragon named Kooresh, when he was a little younger than me."

Spyro's tail also begins wagging, wanting to hear anything that involves his biological father, and happily he doesn't need to ask his younger brother, as Cyrus is quick to speak of his hero's hero.

"My dad would tell me how he would get in so much trouble because of him, but no one would do anything about it, cause Kooresh was enormous." the youngster adds, a giant smile on his face as he recalls one of a dozen stories his father told about his best friend and mentor.

"He's the one that taught my father _everything_." Cyrus continues, remembering the lessons he was taught as a child, and the name that his father would use when crediting where he learned his skills.

"Kooresh, and his family, are one of the reasons I am who I am today..." As reality tends to do, Cyrus remembers the true reason why his father would always talk of this dragon, and a more stern expression fills his face.

"...and why I am even alive in the first place."

Cyrus takes a moment to collect his thoughts, like his father would when speaking of his true hero.

"It was his daughter, Faith, that rescued my dad during the Siege of Titan's Point." Everyone gives the young dragon their full attention, as not many details are known of this attack, except that it happened.

The youngster proudly tells the tale of how Blake Sr. survived the worst massacre in dragon history.

"She bravely took on an entire platoon of apes by herself, allowing nearly fifty dragons the time they needed to flee the city." Cyrus suddenly looks at his big brother, as another thought comes to his mind. He looks up at the sky as this is how he has spoken to his father since the day he died, and a smile fills his face.

"Since one of those dragons was _our_ dad...If you think about it, _Faith_ is the reason we are _all_ here today. Cause if he had died..." His eyes return to big brother. "...you would never have existed either."

Everyone remains quiet for a moment, allowing that information to sink in. Only the sound of them packing their things together for the return trip to Warfang is heard, until of course, Sparx breaks the silence with his charm.

"See Spyro...I've been saying it for years, it ain't all about you, bro."

The group laughs hearing the sibling sarcasm, and more so as Spyro grasp his older little brother in his right paw, then places him in the satchel he was packing.

"Ok...so I've cleaned up my garbage." he calmly remarks, folding the flap over his brother to keep him quiet.

Not surprising, that don't work either.

"Dude! Are you ever gonna wash this thing? It smells like a public bathroom in here!" Sparx pauses for a moment taking a very pronounced sniff, then continues his insult back towards his brother. "No, actually it's smells more like your breath when you wake up, Toiletmouth."

The group laughs again as Spyro places a paw over his muzzle, an embarrassed look on his face.

"So...I get bad morning breath, Sparx... Shut up about it!"

Cynder smiles, and readies to add on to the insult about the breath that even she finds hard to deal with, however, Spyro's other brother is first to respond.

"It is pretty bad, bro..." Cyrus remarks, a rather strange smile on his face as he recalls many mornings where he rose to the same terribly strong odor. "...but it kinda reminds me of Dad."

The young navy blue dragon looks at his big brother with a pair of wide eyes, his tail once again wagging with the joy of a _strong_ memory.

"His breath could bend steel. I don't know how mom could give him kiss every morning with a straight face." Cyrus then looks at Cynder, his smile widening even further. "Can _you_ tell me how?"

"I literally have poison for breath in the morning..." she replies, then smiles like Cyrus. "...and even I have to choke back my tears when he kisses me if he didn't chew on a mint leaf first."

Sparx' laughter is heard over everyone else, whist still in his brother's satchel. Spyro, on the other hand, just stares at his girlfriend with a completely stunned look on his face.

"Really!?" he begins to say sarcastically but Cynder gives him no chance, locking her muzzle against his with a very loving smooch.

The ground suddenly shakes at this moment, not violently, but enough to be felt by everyone in the group.

"Wow! What a kiss?" Oswald remarks when an excited Manweresmall pops from her hole, and once again, naked as the day she was born.

"That was an earthquake, Stupid, and it came from the city!" La Rue cries out, pointing in the direction of Warfang. Her fear is deep and true, especially as she reveals the most important fact she felt in that sudden shaking.

"But it did not come from underground...that was a surface tremor Spyro!"

The purple dragon realizes the city may be under attack and quickly is up in the air. However, after clearing the tree line, allowing him to see Warfang in the distance, the still slightly buzzed dragon holds put. Three others take to the sky; Oswald, Brazin, and Terrador, but they also come to a stop and hover by the hero with the same look of shock.

"Ummm...Where did the North Gate go?"

Terrador's question is suddenly answered, as a massive slab of rock begins rising from the ground, replacing the missing section of wall. And even from about a dozen miles off, Spyro and the several stunned witnesses that hover in the air beside him, bare witness to the impossible. They all stare in disbelief as a colossal sized drake raises a newer, taller, section of wall in place of the old one, by himself.

The group of four gaze awkwardly at each other, everyone wondering what to do, as an answer escapes them.

"I think we need to grab everyone who can't fly and get back to the city now." Spyro remarks, his voice still unsure of what he sees, but realizing there is no real danger to his home, the purple dragon actually calms down.

The remaining three just nod their heads, but don't move from the sky, still frozen by what they are watching.

"Did he really just lift that _entire_ section of wall by _himself_?"

Terrador's question goes unanswered by the other Earth dragon, as Brazin cannot comprehend what he saw with his own eyes.

"Is that even possible, Master Terrador?" Oswald's voice is very questioning, never having witnessed the Earth Guardian lift anything a fraction of this size. "That has to be a least a thousand tons of rock he's moving!"

"Or more!" the Guardian Master returns, his eyes fixed upon the large dragon that continues doing the impossible. "That is solid granite he's lifting. Spyro and myself labored to yank small blocks from the ground and stack them to rebuild the section destroyed during the war."

Terrador turns to Brazin, who also knows how agonizing it was to rebuild this northern wall, as he was a part of the crew that helped stabilize the structure.

"Those stones weighed a ton a piece, and there were more than a thousand...right?"

Brazin nods his head, then points out the obvious. "And if my eyes aren't deceiving me, that wall is like twenty feet taller than the original."

The staring continues for another minute as Spyro, Cynder and Cyrus collect everyone's things, as well as a black puma and a now half naked Manweresmall female.

"You could have waited until I put my pants on Spyro...it's cold up here." La Rue grumbles whilst belting her draws up and giving the purple dragon a nasty look. However, sensing everyone is still on edge, the Manweresmall female looks towards the city.

"So, what's so amazing?"

"LOOK!" Brazin remarks before thinking, and is quickly met with a sarcastic stare from a pair of worthless eyes.

"I can't see past my nose, Moron..." She remarks, then turns to the scene that keeps everyone in awe, as a loud noise is heard by her impeccable ears. "...but I can hear someone is disturbing the North Wall."

"That's my friend, Kooresh..." Shadow replies nonchalantly. "...and it looks like he's making a new gate. One large enough for even himself to enter the city."

La Rue shakes her head no, hearing something she believes is impossible.

"No one individual can move that much rock, especially pure granite..." she remarks, then points at Oswald. "...even Master Terrador can only lift a cubic yard at the most."

No one laughs at the fact she pointed toward the wrong dragon, which she notices after a few seconds. And upon hearing no reply to her statement, La Rue realizes no one is paying attention to her, which proves they are all in awe. It forces her to turn around and stare at the scene she cannot see once again.

"If that's true, I wanna see this too Spyro..." She taps her foot several times in the cupped palms of the purple dragon, spurring him with her blunt toenails to start him going. "...so get a damn move on!"

Spyro looks over at the group and with a simple grin, he heeds her words and takes off towards the city.

Everyone gives chase, however, the still somewhat intoxicated dragon becomes confuse, as two members of the group were left behind

"What about Hunter and Meadow?" Brazin remarks with a bit of confusion, looking around again and realizing the two cheetah warriors are not with the group moving away.

"Something about 'They only like to fly with the wings on their feet'..." Cynder replies, holding out the stone dragon's satchel, which she grabbed for the preoccupied drake. Brazin takes it from her with a thankful smile, then follows her pointing arm down towards the ground, noticing the two cats giving chase to one another. "...so they are going to run back to the city."

"So why is _he_ riding on a dragon?" Brazin remarks, looking at Shadow, whom straddles Cyrus like a horse.

"Cause those guys are idiots!" the black cat remarks, grasping tightly to the two-toned blue dragon's shoulders, as he spirals twice for an increase of speed. Shadow squeals with joy, enjoying the rush of adrenalin, and air, that now ravage every tingling hair on his body.

"This is the only way to travel!"

The group tries to keep up with Spyro, who seems hell bent on getting back to the city faster then everyone else. However, as Kooresh suddenly stops his big lift and looks behind him, the purple dragon holds his flight.

To everyone's surprise, Kooresh leaps over the wall he made and hides himself from view.

"What the hell is going on, Spyro!?" Sparx asks, having removed himself from the smelly satchel and taken his place by his confused brother's right horn.

The purple dragon has no chance of answering before every single cannon in the city is fired simultaneously, though none in their direction. The loud noise startles the entire group, but only for a moment, as the shells are quickly noticed heading straight up into the ever darkening night sky.

They explode with a dazzling display of colors, filling everyone's eyes and ears with the booming welcome that was given five weeks earlier...when Spyro first came back from defeating Malefor.

Just like then, Warfang's North Square is filled with citizens, all cheering as the group clears the wall. However, unlike that day, the reception does not stop when Cynder is noticed entering the city with their hero.

In fact, as the group flies down to the only clearing within the crowded North Square, landing by the largest dragon they've ever seen, the former Terror of the Sky is the first greeted by a dozen whelplings. All with a bouquet of fresh roses.

"Welcome back Ms. Cynder!" a young red fire breather says, handing her a swirl of different colored blooms, and with no fear in his eyes. He then bows, as do the rest of the children, making Cynder turn to her boyfriend. He too has a completely blank look on his face, not having a clue of what is going on either.

"What year was that bottle of Avalerian Ale, Brazin?" Oswald asks with the same confusion as the rest of the party, watching as the group of young dragons hug Cynder, then head back for more flowers. A second group surround Spyro and La Rue, and like before, bestow hugs and flowers.

"I don't know..." he replies as the first group that welcomed Cynder now approach him. "...but I was told it was a good vintage."

The returning wave of children separate into smaller groups of three, heading to the other dragons that stand with Spyro and Cynder.

"Please follow us, Mister Brazin." the children ask, grasping his arms and helping him move to the sidelines, as the other youngsters do with Terrador, Cyrus and Oswald.

This leaves the two heroes alone in the middle, as they were instructed to do. A spotlight suddenly shines down from the Guardian temple, and at that instant the crowd begins to cheer like crazy.

"Am I dreaming, or am I still drunk?" Spyro asks, stepping closer to Cynder as she begins trembling with fear.

He grasps her tightly for two reasons. First and foremost, to comfort his girlfriend with his secure grasp. But also, it allows Spyro to feel every shutter and accidental poke from her horns and spines. To smell every scent of the flowers she holds, as well as the faint aroma of vanilla that still permeates from her body.

These sensations of pain and pleasure prove he is awake and a wide smile fills his face. He lowers his head down to her ear and with a soft voice begins saying the same thing that is shouted from the Guardian's temple

"This is what should have happened weeks ago!"

The voice is unfamiliar, though the face is easily recognizable, and both Spyro and Cynder stand in stunned silence.

"I had mentioned that a Hero's welcome is long overdue for Avalar's greatest son..." Kelvin articulates his words clearly as he strides up to the pair, a possession of five Guardians following behind. The black and orange dragon walks directly up to them, bows his head with respect, then gently takes Cynder's paw from Spyro's grasp.

"...as well as her strongest and most humble daughter."

Both stare at the fire breather in disbelief, and not because the scar on his throat has miraculously disappeared, or even because he spoke clearly. It is the actual words that come from his mouth, words that the Shadow dragoness has only dreamed of hearing.

"The world owes you a debt of gratitude, Ms. Cynder..."

The black dragon gestures a paw to his sibling, whom still remains close to his big brother's side, though he is no longer translating a voice only he was able to understand. Infurnus nods, then releases a small plume of fire into the air, signaling the cannons to begin firing another tremendous volley of colorful ordinance.

"...and it's about time that we showed it."

* * *

 **Now that you see where this story is heading, and that no one is going to die...I can tell you for certain, The final chapter will be the feel good chapter of the year.**


	26. Proposals

**OK...there were a few gaps in the last chapter, so I filled them in here. As for that feel good chapter that I usually have at the end.. well I guess I have another installment to produce.**

 **Don't worry, I can handle it.**

 **I hope you've enjoyed this story as much as I have imagining it up for you.**

* * *

Chapter 25 Proposals

After healing the Fire Guardian, nobody questioned Scythe's character, though they did stare, like most would do towards Cynder. However, unlike his terrified younger sister, Scythe boldly took charge of the moment he was exposed to the world.

He pointed a sharp talon at two injured whelplings, putting the attention on them, and simply said...

"I will show you what this world can learn from listening to my sister."

Now, intently staring at Scythe's translucent paws, the Guardians of Avalar, as well as the entire population of Warfang, remain in awe as this large, but gentle, dragon works a new type of magic before their eyes.

"Well, that was remarkably simple." Onyx, the Shadow Guardian, and oldest of the Order of Eight, says with a bit of shame in his voice, as the brother of Cynder draws his paw from the arm of a young whelpling. He holds out the shard of steel that has hindered this youngster's ability to walk properly, since being struck by an arrow last year.

"You know, the healers have tried helping this poor child for months, and you took all of fifteen seconds to end his pain." Storm adds with the same anguish in her voice, truly feeling horrible that this child has limped around Warfang in agony for some time.

"How did you do this?" Kelvin asks, his voice still sending chills down his little brother's spine, as his words emerge articulately.

Scythe gives a big smile to the young whelpling, who shows great relief the moment this tiny foreign object is removed. However, since he is only half way done with this procedure, the black dragon holds the child where he is for a moment longer and continues his demonstration.

"I'm not done yet... _Joseph_ , I think you said your name is..." He gently lowers the child back to a seated position on the rim of the North Square fountain. "...please stay still for a moment longer."

Even as nervous as he is, this seven year old stays put, waiting to see if this large dragon can produce the total comfort he had said he could.

"Yes sir..." He replies with a smile, then shows his gratitude by asking Scythe to call him by a name only his friends use. "...and please, just call me Joey."

Scythe uses the paw he helped relieve a great deal of pain with to rub the youngster's head gently. He then turns his attention back to the Guardians, as well as all of Warfang itself, whom he asked to witness this new power.

"All dragons have an inherent ability to heal one another, by passing a portion of their own stamina or magic power through contact." he says, getting a nod from everyone who knows this simple ability, as well as the little drake he is healing. At this moment, Scythe's entire arm slowly fades away, and like it did moments earlier when he removed the splinter of metal, the Shadowy paw penetrates the youngster's scared scales.

"Now, having the ability a Shadow dragon possesses, I'm able to focus this power _inside_ someone's body, healing the damage with pinpoint accuracy."

Kelvin raises a paw to his throat, rubbing the spot where the Terror of the Sky's blade had left a deep scar. And now, nothing remains.

"Well...it's an odd feeling...I can tell you."

"And it's cold!" Joey remarks, his breath suddenly condensing into a frosty mist.

Scythe takes the young dragon's damaged forearm in his other paw and stretches it out slowly. This produces a yelp of pain, as the boy stretches out muscles that have not moved in months, making everyone who can hear him uncomfortable. But after only a second, a smile returns to the young dragon's face, as this year-long cramped muscle finally relaxes.

Scythe then removes his paw from the youngster's wound, and with a wink of his eye. "You're all set, my young friend." he remarks, but he didn't need to say a word.

"YOU DID IT!" Joseph cries out with great joy, as the pain he has felt for a good portion of his memorable life fades away completely. The whelpling places this paw down, putting actual weight on it for the first time in a year, and he suddenly begins to cry.

He looks up at Scythe, his lower lip quivering as his emotions overrun him.

"How can I thank you for this?"

Scythe lowers his head down, getting tearful eye to tearful eye with him.

"I learned this skill from from my sister, Cynder. So if you want someone to thank...you need to talk to _her_."

The young dragon nods his head up and down convincingly and his smile only increases in size.

"I will!" he declares, leaping down from the fountain rim, and getting a rousing ovation from the crowded square as he hits the ground without a whimper.

The place only gets louder as Joey immediately does two things he hasn't been able to do in a year. The first is his full speed run across the Square. The second, and most important to Joseph, is when he gets to his mother, whom he finally get to hug with both arms.

As the crowd enjoys the emotion of a young whelp, getting a new lease on his life, Scythe turns his attention to the other child he pointed out. Who, because of her injury, has only heard the joy around her.

He does not wait for the crowd to quiet down, or for the blinded dragoness to be placed on the rim of the fountain by her mother. He simply cups the small blue dragon's jaw and cheek with a big black paw.

"Remain calm." he says softly, as she shudders for a second, but only cause his touch is cold and unexpected.

"I am calm..." the young dragoness begins to say when her perspective suddenly changes. The whelpling can feel his talons entering the side of her skull, and a cold sensation which encompasses the eyes that were rendered useless by a large explosion.

"By the ancestors..." she whispers with an unexpected sight, seeing shadows and light fill the darkness that has been the life she remembers.

"MOMMY!" the youngster yelps with both fear and joy in her voice, as the entire world suddenly comes into focus.

It scares her for a moment, seeing how big everything is, however, all that fear fades as her mother turns around to witness the powerful magic that is taking place. The young dragoness then loses control of her emotions, as she looks directly into her mom's hazel eyes for the first time...and she smiles.

"I can see you."

The startled mother quickly grasps her daughter in her arms, lifting her up in the air, and cries with joy as her eyes stay locked on hers.

"I don't understand...why would you do this for _my_ child?" she remarks with confusion, looking upon Scythe with a grateful gaze, but also pain, as she heard him say where he learned this special ability.

"I have been nothing but rude and indignant to Cynder since she returned. Why would you help us?"

The large black dragon struggles to keep his emotions in check, knowing how this family has blamed Cynder for the crimes committed by her alter ego, which included the blinding of their daughter.

"My sister has told me she's been trying to make things right, specifically with your daughter, but no one will let her." Scythe says, placing a paw upon the young whelpling's head, and brushing away a tear that runs down her cheek.

"I only hope the gratitude that I am receiving now, can be given to Cynder."

The young mother looks down at her daughter, who once again locks eyes with her.

"We will make sure she knows...we promise. Right baby?"

With just a quick nod of her head, the answer is given.

The young mother then places her daughter's paws down on the cobblestone surface of the North Square, and for the first time ever, follows her little girl as she starts walking towards the center of town.

"Come on mommy!" the young whelp's voice barks with eagerness, as only one thought has crossed her mind upon seeing the world. Her paws move her faster then she's ever gone before, no longer fearing an unexpected impact from an unseen impediment in her path. But mostly, it is so she can see something she has wanted to witness ever since she first walked through the aromatic Garden of Warfang with her mother.

"We can give Cynder some flowers when she gets back!"

The crowded square, once overrun with joy in witnessing a young boy hug his mother for the first time in a year, now stand in udder disbelief, as a formally blind child _leads_ her mother away.

Meanwhile, as Scythe continues a demonstration of his sister's power, another new comer to the city asks to prove his own worth. And though he dwarfs them in size, the large stone drake makes sure he addresses the master builders of the city with great respect.

However, he is unable to convince the four Manwersmalls of the necessity.

"What do you mean the gate is too small?" the master mason argues, as Kooresh begins critiquing the North Wall and the only passage from the city into the mountains.

"I cannot fit through the gate when casually walking, like every other citizen of Warfang." the colossus folds his wings tightly to his sides and crouches down to extenuate how difficult it would be for him to enter or exit his new home.

"So if I am to be a resident of this city, as your Guardians have offered, I would appreciate the ability to come and go without crawling on my stomach."

The head engineer of the tiny group looks at the wall, then at Kooresh, and then again at the wall.

"Just go over it!"

Kooresh rolls his eyes, then looks towards the large quarry of granite that feeds the rebuilding of Warfang, where he was asked to help work.

"Even I cannot get over this wall while carrying tons of rock on my back..."

"Do you realize how solid this damn thing is!?" the master mason grumbles, pointing at individual stones, he and his group painstakingly affixed with precision.

"Spyro and Terrador, _themselves,_ took a week to yank one thousand four hundred and fifty three perfect cubes of stone from that quarry, which were placed with the impeccable skills of several master Earth dragons and twenty craftsmoles. So...It is _impossible_ for _**anyone**_ to remove this structure."

Kooresh looks at the wall, then at the tiny mole like creature, and then back to the wall. He reaches out a single paw, and with very little effort, removes a block of stone...like a Jenga piece.

"This wall is not as solid as you think..." he says with a great deal of sarcasm, juggling the nearly one ton brick in his palm, before placing it neatly at their feet.

"...because it is not one piece."

The group begins babbling among themselves, discussing the impossible action they just witnessed, however, they are stunned silent as Kooresh hits them with another critique of their work.

"And because someone could attack from mountainside, this particular gate should be much taller."

"Are you kidding!? It's seventy five feet straight up to the rampart tower, nothing that cannot fly will reach!" another annoyed Manweresmall barks, but he quiets his bickering upon watching Kooresh raise up on his hind legs, towering even higher over the tiny creatures then he did before.

All four hear the cannon ripped from its position on the top of the gate and they become even more silent. The group stare in stunned disbelief as the large dragon places the rampart weapon down on the ground at their feet by the slab of granite he took down first.

"You were saying!?"

After a few 'Ahhs' and 'umms' the master mason looks up at the large dragon with a gaze of curiosity.

"What do you propose, Sir?"

Kooresh taps the ground with his right paw and all four feel the shaking earth under them. As every nearly blind Manweresmalls does, the small creatures sense the density of the rock with their sonar-like touch.

"Do you feel that solid chunk of rock directly under our feet?" He asks, and without thinking, all four simply nod their heads.

Then of course they think about it.

"ARE YOU NUTS!? YOU CAN'T LIFT TITAN'S ROCK!" the master mason barks out, feeling the massive slab of stone that Manweresmalls have burrowed around for centuries.

"It would take years just to excavate that thing...and to make matters worse, that slab of rock is not granite, it's marble. It is too dense and heavy to move, let alone lift as _one piece_."

Kooresh grins, then smacks the ground again, much harder. This brings a new feeling of surprise as all four feel the entire stone move about an inch.

"That's impossible!" one Manweresmall remarks with stunned disbelief, however, the master mason shows a great big smile on his face.

"No...That's incredible."

As blind as he is, the tiny creature can see the value of having this giant dragon as a friend, or even better...a mentor. His entire attitude changes in an instant, and quickly, the mason bows to a new teacher of geology.

"Is there anything I can do to help...Master."

The colossal Earth dragon is stunned, but simply gives a little grin.

"Make sure no one is under this section of the city as I raise that slab of rock, or they could be hurt by a cave in."

Kooresh then lowers his head down to the Manweresmall mason, making sure the creature with limited vision can see the stern look in his eyes.

"And my name is Kooresh...I am no one's master."

The old mole-like creature grins and holds up a single little paw.

"You are a _master_ of your craft, Good Sir, and to call you anything different would be an insult to you...as well as myself and my friends here." the small creature remarks, gesturing at the group with over two hundred years of stone working experience.

With no response from the large dragon, the old mole-like creature smiles, then begins digging a hole into the ground. However, after getting only a few feet down, the Manweresmall pops his head back out.

"Now please, don't do anything till I come back...cause I don't want to miss my first lesson...Master _._ "

Kooresh returns the smile and simply nods his head, allowing the old Manweresmall to continue on his way to warn his fellow Earth burrowing citizens of the possible danger above. He then turns to the other three masonry working Manweresmalls, who still stare at him with complete awe, and asks them to give the same warning above ground. They quickly split up, running to three different sections in the North Square, where the entire population of Warfang is still watching Scythe work his magic.

"Take cover! That oversized Earth dragon said he's gonna tare down the North Wall and replace it with Titan's Rock!"

The crowd finally stops staring at the black and red dragon, as Scythe and the Guardians immediately turn their attention from healing youngsters to the northern wall.

"He's gonna do what!?"

Within five minutes, the entire group that had been standing in the North Square, moved to the wall. And just as fast, their attentions, and their amazement, were taken by a new display of power, a physical one.

The Colossus watches intently himself, as the entire population of Warfang begins surrounding the northern wall, jockeying for the best vantage point to view another demonstration of the impossible.

Kooresh begins by removing several large stones from the top, using just his strength, however, with a specific Manweresmall still missing, the large dragon waits for his cue, which finally comes from below.

"The coast is clear, Kooresh..." a grumbling voice hollers from a newly burrowed hole in the ground, then quickly the old mole climbs up on a outcroping of rock, allowing him to see everything with his sensitive feet. "...now show me how powerful you are."

With precision in his massive paw, the large dragon picks the tiny Manweresmall from his perch.

"Hey! I can't see anything like this!"

"Easy." the colossus says, placing his paw up against the wall, so the old mole can feel the surface with his hands. "...I want you to see the same thing I see."

The old Manweresmall, having no vision at all, not feeling the ground under his feet, takes his time to traverse Kooresh's giant outstretched paw, then places his tiny hand against the wall. The large dragon swings his tail, smacking the structure with a somewhat sturdy impact, opening the eyes of a now annoyed master mason.

"This wall is not as strong as I though." he begrudgingly says, feeling every crack that was exposed by the vibrations Kooresh sent through the stones.

"I'm embarrassed by this."

Kooresh quickly snaps his paw back, flipping the old Manweresmall up into the air, then snatches him out of the sky. He draws him up to his face, again showing the stern look he has in his eyes.

"How can you be my _apprentice_ if you are embarrassed by a structure like this?"

The large dragon replaces his paw to the wall, nearly smothering the tiny creature against the solid granite structure he had been proclaiming his pride for just minutes earlier.

"This undertaking is something to be proud of! " Kooresh barks adamantly, then smashes the wall with his tail again. It sends a stronger wave of vibrations throughout the entire structure, allowing the old Manwersmall to feel every block he and his crew laid out.

"This wall is testament to your race...to build something so impressive, unlimited by your size or sight." Kooresh returns the mole-like creature to a cupped palm, holding him before his eyes, and shows him a smile. "It is going to take a great deal of _our_ strength and wisdom to take this down, and I cannot have someone who will second guess himself on my side."

The old Manweresmall shows a genuine grin, hearing pure sincerity in this massive dragon's voice.

"You really need _my_ help?"

Kooresh smiles wider, then returns the small creature to his small perch. He draws back his tail and calls upon the most sarcastic tone he can muster for a two letter word.

"No."

The large dragon, having felt every crack, crevasse and flaw in the entire structure from his first few strikes, now smacks the wall with a fierce tail whip. Several hundred blocks jostle from the impact, exposing the intricate pattern of stone work.

Kooresh quickly opens his mouth and hits the wall again, but this time with a ball of Earth magic. The impact sends several of the stones from their places, weakening the wall even further.

"What are you doing?" The old mason asks, as Kooresh lunges out to catch several of the granite rocks, stopping them before they hit each other on the ground.

"I don't want them to break..." the large dragon remarks, using his tail to halt several more blocks from impacting themselves. "...these stones will be perfect to dress up the face of _our_ new wall."

The old Manweresmall's eyes open wide as he too sees a vision this dragon has begun laying out already.

"Yes! I see it now. We could make a grand entryway with a raised terrace that will allow citizens a spectacular view of the mountains..." he says and Kooresh finishes his thought.

"We can also build a separate entry way to allow easier access into the city for trade merchants and their carts."

The two smile at each other then both look at the wall, which now shows the signs of it's impending collapse. However, being the nice dragon that he is, Kooresh helps it along by once again using his magic, thought, this time he uses a different power.

The sky above Warfang turns a shade of green with the amount of Earth magic he puts out, as Kooresh envelops the entire wall within a net of his awesome power.

Having this magic anchored inside his body, the wall moves along with the colossus as he steps backward, pulling the entire structure down on itself as one big piece. But when it hits the ground, the wall actually breaks into one thousand four hundred and fifty three identical pieces.

"Wow!" the old Manweresmall remarks, as he can feel every single cube of granite laying safely on the ground. He looks up at the large dragon and shakes his head.

"So... you still don't think I should call you _Master_?"

Kooresh smiles again, and once more draws upon his sarcastic voice before beginning 'the Big Lift'.

"You aint' seen nothing yet."

Nearly an hour had past since Spyro and Cynder touched down in the North Square, and still the place remains crowded, as the inhabitants of Warfang continue showing appreciation to the ones that saved their world.

Albeit, five weeks late.

They primarily surround the black dragoness, as most have already paid their respect to Spyro, and they offer their apologies for being short sighted. However, Cynder doesn't allow them to remain upset at themselves, showing a smile and offering her quick acceptance to each and everyone that says.

"I'm sorry for how I treated you."

"Please, it's not necessary for you to apologize to me." the black dragoness replies, speaking with a young Cheetah warrior who has tried ambushing her several times for killing his father. "I am truly sorry for your loss, and I only wish I could have done something to prevent what happened."

The young warrior looks down at the ground, then back up to the tearful green eyes that show compassion and pain, which he finally understands to be true.

"I know that now, Ma'am." he says, opening an arm out and raising up to hug the dark scaled dragon he once hated with every fiber of his being. He then whispers another apology in her ear for being stubborn and quickly receives her acceptance with a tighter embrace.

"Thank you for not holding any animosity towards me, Ms Cynder..." he begins saying, but suddenly notices a strong shudder in the black dragoness' grasp. He turns and looks in the direction she is staring, quickly noticing the one she has her fear-filled gaze locked upon.

It is the one that scarred her chest. The one that has shown only hatred and rage to the black dragoness. The one that blames Cynder for the death of his love. And the one who has vowed to take her life before his comes to an end.

The anger in his eyes shows he has not had a change of heart, like most, and even surrounded by a large group of new found friends, Cynder suddenly feels uncomfortable.

She turns her head to find Spyro, who shockingly has taken to the air, heading for the center of the city.

"He finally left you alone, My precious little _Terror_." the gray dragon remarks with a very snide voice, making Cynder shudder harder. She quickly looks for a direction to run, but with several youngsters crowded around her, the black and red chested dragoness realizes she cannot get away without trampling someone.

Cynder can feel the sweat bead up on her forehead, as this gray colored Earth breather squares up directly before her. However, before she can begin begging him for her life, as she has several times to no avail.

"If you want _her_...then you'll have to go through _me_ , Clayton." the young Cheetah warrior warns, releasing his half embrace on Cynder and showing the knife he has already drawn from his side.

Positioning himself directly between the terrified black dragoness and the large stone breathing monster, the young warrior readies to defend his new friend.

"I will make short work of you, if you don't move, Boy!" the much larger dragon replies, lowering his head down to get eye to eye with the young Cheetah.

A slight smile fills the face of this tiny warrior, who simply reminds the large dragon of who and what he is.

"I am a Cheetah Warrior...and I will fiercely defend any member of _my_ _pack_ with my life!"

"A member of _your pack_!"

A loud evil-sounding laughter echoes against the cobblestone floor of the North Square, as Clayton cannot control his outburst. He steps forward, knowing the blade this child holds will not penetrate his stone-hard scales.

"If you wish to get hurt by defending this creature, then so be it!" he barks, lunging forward to strike, when suddenly a solid grasp is felt on his tail, forcing Clayton to stop and look behind.

Dozens of Cheetah Warriors now surround him, all with their knives drawn, and all with a look that would cut through stone.

"Chief Hollis!?" the gray drake's voice is filled with shock and fear, seeing the leader from the Northern Village.

"That young warrior told you Cynder is a part of _our_ pack, did he not?"

The question goes unanswered, as Clayton continues counting more and more of the cat-like warriors, who find their way through the crowd to this altercation. Just his gaze is enough to show the Alpha that the large dragon is uninterested in a battle of this magnitude.

"Then I would suggest you move along, Clayton." the adult Cheetah Warrior remarks calmly, but with a deep intensity in his eyes.

Clayton takes a moment, thinking about how badly he would lose a fight against the entire Northern Pack, and simply walks away. He stares hard at Cynder, making her feel more uncomfortable, however, this look is ended by another threat from behind.

"I will warn you just this one time, Clayton. Cynder is off limits." the elder cheetah warns, his voice and eyes still showing how serious he is. "She is now a member of the Northern Pack, and _we_ will defend her with our lives."

The black dragon has a chill shoot down her spine, suddenly feeling uncomfortable in her own body, hearing this many citizens defending her so vehemently. However, she notices another pair of angered eyes, staring at her from across the Square. And though she knows he supports her now, Cynder can see that Brazin is not happy with how she backed down from this confrontation again.

"NO!" The black dragoness' barks, returning a stare towards Clayton that is colder then the one she is receiving from both he and Brazin combined.

"I will not need you to defend me, Chief Hollis..." Cynder continues, stepping from the group of young dragons and cheetahs that have surrounded her for the last hour. She strolls directly up to Clayton, her eyes quickly flashing white to show she is drawing power. "...because I will be defending myself from now on."

Brazin, whom stands with Kooresh and Terrador, admiring the wall that was replaced, just smiles at the black dragoness and continues to observe her finest moment as a citizen of Warfang.

"I am not the one that took her from you...and I am not going to let you keep blaming me for something I had no control of!" Cynder continues, getting face to face with the much larger dragon. She literally forces a bit of a retreat with her fierce gaze, as the gray scaled drake takes a step back.

"I have lost enough time in my life to fear and oppression, and I am not about to let you, or anyone else, keep me from living the rest of my life."

Clayton shows his anger as he is pushed back another step and raises his paw to strike, however, Cynder disappears before his eyes, leaving no target for him to hit. She reappears behind the larger dragon, grasping the paw that Clayton raised and pulling back on it. This completely unbalances the full-sized stone dragon, allowing the smaller Cynder to yank him off his feet. She pulls him down on his back, driving the large dragon's long horns into the pavement, which pins Clyaton in an awkward position.

"You worthless coward!" the gray drake calls out with anger as Cynder simply turns away.

"Don't you leave me like this!" he continues with the pain of his predicament, as his weight begins compressing his wings. Clayton flail his paws wildly to right himself, but is unable to move to either side without hurting himself further, and quickly he begs for assistance.

"Please! Help me! " he yells as his excessive weight begins putting more pressure on his fragile wings.

Brazin smiles wide, seeing the same tactic Spyro's younger brother used on him, and his smile widens further as Cynder returns to Clayton's side.

"I never wanted to hurt you." she says, taking the Earth dragon's weight in her paws, allowing Clayton to maneuver his wings out from under his back, then rest them against his flanks. However, she holds him in a position where the large dragon remains unable to right himself, allowing her to speak to the one who hates her most for the first time without fear.

"But, I was never able to make a choice..." she continues, several tears falling from her eyes as Cynder recalls the moment she killed Clayton's mate. "...and because of that, you will hate me for the rest of your life."

The black dragoness gingerly pulls the gray dragon's horns from the ground, and with a gentle heave, Cynder lumbers Clayton back up on to his paws.

"I want you to know that I don't blame you, nor will I ever blame you, for hating me...I mean, How can I?"

Clayton remains silent, suddenly taking a moment to listen, hearing the innocent voice he's never heard before. Or it could be becasue he noticed Spyro, who now lands directly behind his girlfriend.

Cynder turns to her purple hero and shows him a look of confidence he's never seen before, especially in public. And with a simple grin, she holds Spyro from involvement. The black and red dragoness then returns her attention to Clayton, showing him a stern pair of eyes to finish her statement

"But I cannot, and will not, let you hurt me anymore."

Clayton looks down, feeling that familiar pain of his loss, however, this time, it is slightly different. He can see the evil dragon that killed his love is no more, and a peice of him rejoices. But it does not take all the pain, and he shows this as he returns his tear-filled eyes to Cynder.

He says nothing to her, allowing only his eyes to express all of his emotion and pain, which hurts more than any phisical attack he has made against her. But after just a few seconds, the gray dragon turns away, hoping never to have this confrontation again.

Brazin and Terrador are quickly to his side, helping to console a friend, who has taken his first real steps toward recovery.

At the same time, Spyro is beside Cynder, his paw quickly wrapping around her in support.

"You did it." he whispers softly in her ear, adding a soft kiss to Cynder's cheek, as well as a tighter embrace.

"What did I do?" she asks with pain in her voice, feeling worse than ever as Clayton continues showing strong emotion.

"You proved to him that the last part of that evil dragon, you still though lived inside of you, is gone forever." Spyro replies, turning Cynder around to face him. "You showed him how angry you were, but still had compassion for his feelings."

The dark dragoness goes to lower her head, but Spyro's paw cups her jaw before she can. He raises her chin high and looks deep into her eyes.

"I've never been more proud, or more in love with you, then I am right now." With his free paw, Spyro reaches back to a small satchel he has on his side, and removes the soil-covered pouch he just retrieved from his home.

"So...I cannot think of a better time to ask you this question."

Cynder begins shuddering hard as her hero reveals a ring of blue crystal that looks like the one his mother wares on her paw, and realizes he is going to propose.

Spyro then kneels down before her, his paws shaking as he becomes more and more nervous, hoping he won't pass out. The purple dragon begins going over the words he practiced in his head, but as he looks up and locks eyes with hers his mind goes blank.

"I've spent so many nights wondering what I would say to you, when it came time to profess my love." Spyro stops for a second, noticing the crowded North Square, has now completely surrounded them.

"And now, standing here before you...and all of Warfang...I find myself struggling to speak. Thinking of what I can say to make you understand how much you mean to me."

Cynder, who already struggles to remain up on her nervous feet, almost falls over as Spyro lifts her left front paw from the ground, and slides the ring down her middle talon and onto her finger.

"But I will spend the next hundred years, or more, showing you... Proving to you... Loving you... If you will have me?"

She says nothing, answering the question simply with a strong embrace and an even more powerful kiss.

The black dragoness can feel time slow down, as she holds this moment in her mind forever. And though Cynder's eyes never leave Spyro's, she can see everyone around her, and the joy they all share in this moment.

In fact, everyone in the square begins cheering as Spyro returns to his feet and lifts Cynder off of hers, including a gray scaled dragon, who gives the young couple a smile.

The purple hero takes off to begin his newest and most difficult journey.

Marriage.


	27. All Good Things

**The old saying is all good things must come to an end, and sadly this is the case for me and my journey with Spyro. I have enjoyed writing for the purple dragon and his fans these last 4 years, but to tell the truth, I don't feel compelled or inspired to write about him any further. I must admit, I have come a long way since I first posted Sparx the Dragon, and I hope you all noticed an improvement, but it is time to stop writing full-length stories about a character I don't own.**

 **Spyro was a big reason for my sudden desire to start writing, as I was not thrilled with the way the games ended, and I became obsessed. I never felt such enjoyment as I did, trying to image up a world that is not mine, or real for that matter. But now I find another character has taken my attention, and I'm sorry to say, I don't have time for two obsessions.** **Does that mean I stop writing about Spyro completely...probably not, as I still have short story ideas that will work off different scenarios from my other stories.**

 **I wish I could tell you my next full-length story will be on FF, but I don't like lying. The story I've started is completely original, and I hope one day to have it published.**

 **As for this last chapter, it is not really a chapter but a series of moments in a very important day, and my way of showing how everyone will live happily ever after.** **I stole the final chapter title from Star Trek TNG, but since I have used all sorts of puns and clichés in my titles, I think this is the best name for it. So, enjoy the final segment of my last FULL-LENGTH Spyro story.**

* * *

 **Chapter 26 All good things...**

It took about four seconds for Spyro and Cynder to choose a venue for their wedding, and though it took nearly a week for Nina to rearrange her precious Garden of Warfang, she was more than happy to accommodate her son's wishes. No one protested the bonding of these two dragons, as was expected by several angered citizens, understanding this day was not just for Cynder, but their hero. However, seeing her draped in white bridal silks, her scarlet red and black-lined wings laying gracefully against her flanks, most saw the reason Spyro choose her for his mate.

The rest found out during the reception, as Cynder was very open about her past, exposing the soft side only her new husband, and his older brother, got to witness.

Of course, it may have been the case of Avalarian Ale that Brazin brought as a gift.

But as time went on, and as more citizens listened to her, the idea of Cynder being their enemy faded away. She was one of them, and it only made her more beautiful, no longer flinched with every encounter on the street, allowing the Shadow dragoness to show her true self without fear.

A year went by fast, as the world found itself in perfect harmony. In fact, there has been only two big events in the city since the war's end, and oddly enough, both happen to be the buzz around Warfang right now.

Everyone in the city is excited, most camping outside the Rookery, waiting for the first glimpse of the newest hatchling. However, one dragon is not that happy, as he has been doing most of the chores for his family.

"I'm gonna kill him." Cyrus remarks under his breath, covering his mother with a blanket he told his little brother to get.

He looks at the empty bed where Blake should be sleeping and becomes enraged. The two-toned blue dragon then looks towards the door, where he knows his brother is laying, out on the balcony. And after making sure his mom is warm, he heads outside to kill his little brother.

"I thought I told you to..." The blue dragon stops grumbling as he looks upon an empty balcony, and quickly he scratches his head. However, it takes only a second for Cyrus to know where his little brother went, making him even angrier.

"Oh! I'm really gonna kill him this time."

He steps over to the ledge of the balcony, and looks down at his big brother's house.

"I swear, If he is under Cynder's wing..." the young adult remarks, looking up to the sky where he finds his father's star "...I'm sending him up there to meet you dad."

The blue dragon thinks of the long day he just had, working with Cyril on his Ice skills, and focuses all this pent up rage on one thought.

"He does nothing all damn day...so I ask him once to get mom a friggen blanket and noooo." the blue dragon keeps his rant to himself the entire way down, gliding three flights as quietly as he can, so not to wake the group sleeping below. He lands with a single paw on Spyro's balcony, gently lowering himself down on all fours, so not to wake his brother and sister in law either.

Cyrus slowly pads over to the large door that leads into Spyro's bedroom and cautiously looks inside. His eyes lock upon big brother, whom has grown another three feet in the last year. His eyes shut tightly, dancing as he dreams. The teenager then notices Spyro's wing, stretched out over the small sleeping cushion he had bought for his big brother, the moment he heard his wife was pregnant.

 _How cute._ he thinks to himself, seeing the new father keeping his offspring warm, however, as his eyes notice a blue nose under Cynder's wing, the happy thoughts go away.

Cyrus snorts angrily, but keeps from blowing his top, not wanting to wake his big brother, knowing how busy he has been for the last _two months_.

He calmly steps over to Cynder's right wing, lifting it ever so slightly, and takes a strong hold of his little brother's nose. This wakes Blake, who shows panic in his eyes the moment he sees his angry brother's face.

"No!" he tries to yelp, however, with a vice like grip upon his face, Blake is unable to make a peep.

"I'm gonna break your nose when I get you home..." Cyrus whispers strongly, then yanks his little brother out from under Cynder's wing.

The squealing cry of a tiny hatchling immediately stops Cyrus' action, and his heart sinks deep into his stomach, especially as he notices his two-month-old pink and black niece sleeping on Blake's back.

Mom and Dad wake up the second they hear their daughter, quickly finding the culprit with their blood shot eyes.

"What the hell are you doing, Cyrus!?" Spyro growls angrily, exposing the empty cushion under his wing as he stands up.

"She finally fell asleep, you Idiot!" Cynder adds, rubbing the bags under her eyes.

She goes to crack the middle brother of Spyro in the head for waking her baby, but she is unable to as a wide smile fills her tiny daughter's. The small pink and gold dragoness, upon noticing her bigger blue uncle, opens her little black wings and jumps around excitedly on uncle Blake's back.

"Oh good... your turn to be Faith's sleeping cushion, bro." the youngest brother remarks sarcastically, finally getting a chance to stand up, as Cyrus removes the little whelpling from his back.

Blake stretches out, moving muscles he has held perfectly still for over an hour, not wanting to disturb the tiny dragoness that fell asleep while laying quietly on her uncle.

"I think she likes the coldness of our scales, so make sure you keep them cool, and..." he stops talking at his brother with an attitude and looks strongly at Cynder, repeating the same thing she scolded him with, whilst using a very good impression of her raspy voice.

"... _Don't you move a muscle or you'll wake her_."

Blake walks around his big brother, then looks angrily at his bigger brother. He snatches the blanket he had come to get for his mom out from under the purple and gold dragon and walks out. Though, he stops just before the door and looks back at Cyrus

"And good luck getting any sleep around here, cause our brother snores louder than Terrador."

Blake wastes no more time, walking out the door and taking off for his own sleeping cushion three flights up.

Cyrus, whom realizes now that Blake was kept here against his wishes, gets a cold look from Cynder. Especially, as he tries to place her young daughter down and walk away. Cause this makes the tiny pink whelpling begin crying again.

Cynder says nothing, as her enraged eyes say everything, and Cyrus quickly scoops the young dragoness back up in his paws. He tries using his own eyes to show how tired he is, but Cynder will have none of it, simply turning around to lay back down on her cushion.

"You woke her up..." she starts grumbling, then pauses as Spyro lets out a loud snore. She shakes her head, annoyed at how fast her husband has passed out again, but returns her focus to his brother. "...so you can keep her company while I try to get some more sleep. We have another busy day tomorrow, and your brother has an even busier schedule, so I'm asking you nicely."

Her tail blade is waved in front of her brother-in-law's nose, expressing how nicely she is asking.

"But Cynder...I've been with _Cyril_ and _Volteer_ all day..." he whispers in defense of his own mental health, as he is exhausted too. However, Cyrus pauses as Faith rises up on her hind paws in his cupped palms and begins reaching for her uncle's nose.

The blue dragon quickly snorts a ring of icy cold vapor from his nostrils, which encompasses Faith and makes her giggle. She flails at it with her front paws, breaking the mist apart around her, then dances around in his palms.

As the cloud of water dissipates, she looks back up at Cyrus, hoping to get another ring. The blue dragon lays down, allowing his treatment to continue, realizing this is the happiest he's been all day. He places Faith, who received her name to honor his family's hero, down on the ground and lowers his big bulbous nose before the tiny dragoness.

"Do you want another cloud, Faith?" he says with a playful voice, and the young dragoness, who understands only his tone, spins around in a circle flapping her little wings.

Uncle Cyrus uses his Icy breath to create a cold mist on the floor, making the little pink whelpling laugh and dance as an enormous cloud of vapor forms before her. She attacks every part of the cloud, making it go away, then runs up her uncle's left forearm and nuzzles her tiny nose into the crook of Cyrus' neck. This always makes him laugh, as the two-month-old daughter of Spyro has already found the best spot to tickle her big blue uncle. It calms the angered spirit churning within, which Faith has been able to do every time he has had a chance to play with her.

A smile fills Cynder's face, as well as a sleeping Spyro, knowing Cyrus is now at the mercy of this tiny little dragon. And like Blake did an hour earlier, this humbled blue drake remains perfectly still for his niece, allowing the pink and black hatchling to find a comfortable spot on his back.

As day breaks, a few hours later, the city comes to life with the news of the egg's first crack, and that today will be the day they are waiting for. It wakes Spyro and Cynder, and their child, as this crowd's noise is the loudest it has been since they started camping out under their balcony.

"Yeah, this was a great place to build our dream home Spyro..." Cynder grumbles, as her baby is woken up early for the tenth straight day, or since the crowd outside the palace rookery began growing. However, before she can get up to tend her child.

"I got her, Sis." Cyrus says, still showing joy in his face, even after being woken after just two hours of sleep. He cups the tiny dragoness in his paws, and dances her into the other room, allowing the tired couple to go back to sleep.

"Can he stay here for another week?" she asks, and Spyro smiles wider.

"No, honey... he has to go back..." he answers very sarcastically. The purple dragon opens his eyes and looks towards the ceiling, in the direction of the Rookery itself. "...I think Mom is gonna need him at home, now more than ever."

Cynder gets up from her spot, padding over to her husband of a year, and lays beside him on her daughter's cushion.

"Your younger brothers are kind and courteous...I finally understand where you get your sweet side..." she says, kissing Spyro's cheek softly, then looking over at the small cushion beside her husband, where a yellow dragonfly remains sleeping soundly. "...cause you certainly didn't get it from your older brother."

"Ha ha ha, You're hysterical Cynder." Sparx remarks with attitude, but does not fire back further, nor does he open his eyes. The yellow dragonfly simply rolls over on his tiny cushion and goes back to sleep.

"Damn...he really must be tired." the black dragoness remarks, knowing Sparx would never back down from a battle of sarcasm with his second-best friend in the world.

"Well I think he has the right idea." Spyro returns, placing his head back down upon the large pillow in front of him. Cynder quickly agrees without a word, lowering her head down beside her hero for a few more winks herself.

* * *

 _Meanwhile, three flights up._

"By the Ancestors... I can't believe this is really happening!"

Terrador strides to the far side of the room, then immediately turns around and follows the same path he just traversed, all the while, his eyes remain locked upon a blueish green egg with a small crack.

"I am about to become a father."

He looks upon the one who bore his offspring with fear in his eyes, and she smiles at his nervousness.

"You remind me of Blake, when Cyrus hatched." Skylar says, calmly walking over to her new husband, and taking him by the paw. She removes the shakiness out of the stone dragon's frame with a simple kiss and an assuring look.

"He couldn't stop pacing, thinking he would fail as a father."

"Do you really think I am ready for this?" the Earth Guardian asks with fear, and before Skylar can say a single word.

"I think you're a good dad."

The voice comes from the other dragon in the room, as Blake found his way under his mother's wing for a few hours of sleep. He strides away from the egg that keeps jostling around in its personal sized nest and walks over to the recently rekindled couple.

"Now... I never really had a father, so I can't say I'm the best judge of what a dad is, Master Terrador." the young dragon says, as his father had died before he hatched. However, having extensive memories of how his brother acted, being the father-figure for this well rounded little whelpling, the youngster gives his honest opinion of what he believes. "...but I think you've been very nice to me and my brother Cyrus these last few months. And you certainly have proven that you love my mom with all your heart."

Blake looks at the egg that begins cracking a little more, then returns his emotion-filled eyes to the large green dragon that has been kind, supporting, and when necessary, strict.

"In fact...I would be honored if I could call you my...dad."

Skylar hugs her son, just like she did a few nights earlier, when he asked his mom whether or not she would be upset at this request. And though he wants to turn around and face his mother for support, the young dragon keeps his eyes focused on the Earth Guardian, hoping to hear a single word.

Yes.

As solid as he is, Terrador crumbles, overcome with emotion. He smothers the boy in an embrace with his new wife, giving his answer with this loving gesture, as his voice is barely able.

"You would really be willing to call me that?"

The young boy pulls his head out from between his mother and his new father's embrace, looking up at the shaky Earth dragon with a confidence his oldest brother always shows in his purple eyes.

"I know you are not my father, but that don't mean you can't be my dad." he says, then looks over at a full-sized painting of his big brother, Spyro, hanging in the rookery. A smile fills his face, and the young dragon becomes slightly sarcastic in voice.

"Look at how great he became...and he only has a _dragonfly_ for his dad." Blake looks up at Terrador and gives a very cheeky grin. "I will have the _Earth Guardian_ giving me guidance. So how can I possibly fail?"

Terrador suddenly finds the confidence anyone would feel, hearing such resounding approval of his fathering skills. He quickly pecks Blake upon the head, cinching the deal as his new Guardian, as this large dragon has never shown that kind of affection youngster is suddenly overcome with emotion himself, embracing both mom and dad with all his might. The young family then turns and awaits the arrival of the newest member of this family, as another large crack develops across the blue green egg.

* * *

Down on the ground level, the excitement grows as well, especially around the small cart operated by a gray-scaled dragon.

"OK...those with bets on the thirteenth day of Augustus... Step forward!" Clayton barks, holding up a satchel of coins. "It's gonna happen some time today. And the grand prize of four thousand gold pieces will go to those luck six winners of the pool."

A combination of Dragons, Manwersmalls and Cheetahs cheer wildly, holding up their tickets in victory, as hundreds more toss their losers to the ground. However, being the enterprising dragon that he is, the stone breather remarks about the other bet he is running.

"You can still get your money back by guessing the gender! Fifty fifty...Boy or Girl, only five gold pieces!"

Some of the angry faces show relief and quickly they reach down to grab their tickets, trading them in for a chance to regain their loses. Along with five more pieces of their hard-earned gold.

"How did we do, Clayton?" asks one of the dragons who gave the Earth breather his support for running this pool. And of course, he is cut off by the more anxious backer of this small gambling enterprise.

"Yes! Tells us! Is it as lucrative as the other pool you ran with Storm and Crystal, during Cynder's pregnancy, or did we make a mistake by trying to profit off the birth of our new crown prince... or princess."

Before letting the motor mouthed guardian speak again, the large stone dragon clues in his silent partners to the outcome of the first bet.

"We've made a killing on the Pool, Master Cyril...Master Volteer." Clayton pauses talking and hands a single pink card to a cheetah warrior female, who guesses girl.

"We're gonna pocket well more than a grand a piece..." he says, getting a wide smile from both Guardians. The gray drake then shows the two piles of pink and blue cards, one much larger than the other

"...however, at five gold pieces...If Skylar and Terrador have a boy, we will lose that grand and a little more, paying off these gender bets." he remarks, passing out three more blue cards to a group of male Manweresmalls. He then looks back at the Guardians with a very wide grin.

"But if it's a _girl_..." Again he pauses, handing out another three blue cards. "...we make out like bandits."

Cyril and Volteer suddenly slump their shoulders, but Clayton begins laughing.

"Come on guys, I thought you knew the _action_ is what gambling is all about." the gray dragon opens a chest showing them more than ten thousand gold coins, adding another hundred he just took in during the last minute. "Cause if we win, we split all of _this_!"

Volteer remains speechless for the first time in his life, but Cyril actually loses his composure.

"Holy crap! All of that can be ours!"

Clayton smiles, closing the chest with his tail, while handing out another blue card.

"Don't count it yet my cold friend, we still have to win the..."

"IT'S A GIRL!" Blake's voice suddenly barks from above, as the young dragon makes it known to the world about his newest sibling's arrival. "I HAVE A LITTLE SISTER!"

"The bets are closed!"

Clayton quickly lowers the window to his shop, nearly removing the paws of another gambler, who happily keeps his five gold coins. The gray dragon then turns and looks at the two guardians, whom cannot keep their mouth from opening wide with shock, especially as Clayton opens the gleaming chest of coins again.

"BY THE ANCESTORS...WE'RE RICH BOYS!"

* * *

Spyro and his wife, still laying against each other, open their eyes upon hearing Blake's outburst.

"Did you hear that?" Cynder whispers in Spyro's ear. "You have a little sister."

A wide smile fills the purple dragon's face, and slowly he begins rising to his feet. However, Cyrus speeds into the room, his front paws firmly securing his tiny pink niece to his chest.

"Hey guys, get up! Or I'm gonna take Faith with me." he says in a near panic, as he missed the actual hatching of his newest family member. "Mom's gonna kill me if I don't get up there right now!"

Cynder quickly scrambles to get up, taking her baby from the blue teenage dragon, who immediately burns the marble under his paws moving toward the door.

"Why couldn't the kid just wait till noon to come out of her shell." Sparx grumbles with an attitude, rolling out of his bed with the scuffling sound of Cyrus' quick departure. He slaps himself in the face with both hands to wake up, then hovers up to his younger brother's right horn.

"Your daughter was the same way, Bro, popping out at four in the damn morning! And it seems like now she just wants to make noise at that same time, _every_ day."

Spyro, Cynder, and even Faith, who has no clue what he said but still knows he's being a poop, stare at the little yellow dragonfly with anger.

"You know, you can stay with mom and dad in the Garden...if you don't like it here?!"

Sparx looks around the giant room he shares with _three_ dragons, then envisions the tiny room where he would bunk with nearly _thirty_ of his dragonfly brothers.

"I was just kidding, Spyro!" The loudmouth insect buzzes over to his niece and kisses her nose very lovingly.

"I'm not annoyed at all by your daughter's ability to wake up before the roosters..."

Not paying attention to the two month old that loves to swat at her tiny yellow uncle, Faith's little pink paw catches Sparx across the back, knocking him from the sky.

Both Spyro and Cynder are stunned, but quickly begin laughing as the uninjured dragonfly gets up from the ground. He starts swearing angrily to himself, especially as his younger brother taunts him for getting to close. However, as Faith becomes upset and begins crying, the mood changes.

"It's okay sweetie..." Cynder begs, bouncing her baby softly in her paws, as Faith gets a little louder. "...you didn't hurt your uncle. Shhhh...sshhhhhh!"

"Dude...you made her cry!" Spyro argues, drawing a look from his older brother.

"ME!?" he barks with rage, making Faith cry louder, hearing her uncle raise his voice again.

"Really!?" the purple dragon retorts, keeping his tone strict, but volume low. Spyro immediately moves to his daughter, still being held in his wife's paws. He rubs his nose softly against hers, then buries the pink whelpling in a cloud of cold mist.

Faith quickly switches gears, giggling as the cold vapor tickles her face. She starts flailing her front paws at the cloud daddy made for her to play with, making Sparx feel guilty about his yelling. He quickly zips back over to his big bother and whispers softly.

"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to upset her, Spyro."

The purple dragon smiles, then covers his little daughter with another blanket of cold mist, which makes her giggle even louder. The tension is broken by the sound of joy, but Spyro knows his brother, and adds some verbal relief.

"No, it's my fault Buddy...I'm sorry for laughing at you before." Spyro taps his older brother with his right horn, bumping him softly and showing a wide grin. "Though, you got to admit, her paw-eye coordination is getting much better."

"Oh great! So I guess I should start wearing armor around your daughter." the little yellow dragonfly replies sarcastically, rolling his eyes at his big purple brother. Sparx then gets nose to nose with Spyro, pointing a finger in his face.

"You know... This would not be an issue if you didn't teach her to swat at me two weeks ago, Stupid!" the small insect argues to his brother, and Spyro struggles to keep from laughing, remembering the day he first had Faith chase his brother from the room.

"But the really messed up thing..." Sparx continues, knowing how polite Spyro's daughter is when Nina or Flash, or any other dragonfly for that matter, enters the room. "...she only swats at _me_ , and not the rest of our family."

Spyro begins hurting himself, trying not to laugh in his brother's face, knowing he has taught his little girl to only swat at the yellow dragonfly. However, his attitude changes upon seeing Faith emerge from the cloud of mist behind Sparx, leaping at her uncle, a tiny pink paw drawn back to swat.

"NO! FAITH!" Dad barks with fear, but the whelpling has already connected with her target, swatting the yellow dragonfly from the sky, just as she has been taught to do so well.

* * *

Just down the road a bit, inside the residence of the ruler of Warfang, the crowd's resounding cheer puts two dragons in high gear, finishing up a job they were tasked by the Hero of Avalar himself.

"Cobalt, if this nursery is not finished by the end of the day, not only will Spyro barbeque our asses, but Terrador will bury us where our charred bodies fall...for leaving a gaping hole in his precious palace wall." Scythe grumbles, staring upon the opened and unfinished section of the dragon castle's residence.

"I cannot move this thing any faster! It's marble! It'll crack, like your head." the young Earth breather remarks, trying his best to slide a five ton slab of marble back into place, closing the hole they needed to make for a special item's installation. He pauses what he is doing, taking a breather and giving an angered look to the black dragon doing nothing to help him.

"And since you can't move rock, you Shadow-powered weakling, shut up and stop bothering me, cause if I break this friggen' thing, our asses are cooked just the same! Sir!"

The young dragon quickly and quietly returns to his job, especially after insulting the newest Guardian of Warfang.

"That's _Master_ Shadow Powered Weakling, Cobalt." Scythe remarks with a condescending tone, relaxing one of Terrador's apprentices, so he can do his job without wrecking his master's home.

"Do you need assistance, Master...Shadow Powered Weakling?"

The voice is familiar and welcoming, especially since the colossus was not due to return to Warfang for another week or two.

"Kooresh, my tiny friend, what a sight you are." the large black and red dragon turns around to face the much larger drake, then quickly turns away. "And now that I've seen your ugly mug...when do you leave again?"

The colossus gives a good laugh, then with a single paw, maneuvers the large dragon into an embrace.

"Ahhh...I've missed you too, Scythe." the massive drake admits, then with his other paw Kooresh moves the slab of rock into place, allowing Cobalt to finish sealing the palace wall.

"So, Big Fella... Are you done with your work in Dragoon Bay, or do you have to go back?"

Kooresh smiles wide, knowing he has completed another impossible task given him by the Guardians, rebuilding a city that was leveled by a violent volcanic eruption, when the Destroyer completed his circle.

"The city has been restored to her former glory. And her marina is launching its first group of trade ships today."

Both Scythe and Cobalt show shock in their eyes, as they were informed it would take a year to clear debris from the bay. However, the colossus, unlike other Earth dragons, enjoys the water.

"I spent my off time clearing the bay so my co workers and myself could cool off during the hotter days." Kooresh smiles again, recalling several instances after removing millions of tons of volcanic rock from from the bay, which allowed everyone a place to relax after a long days work.

"I even took the time to make a channel deep enough to handle any vessel, so even the largest ship can roll into her port." he continues with pride, talking about the city he has helped breath life into again, rebuilding the Crown Jewel of the Avalarian Sea.

"I was thinking of staying there..." the large drake admits, as the salty smell of the ocean, which he has come to enjoy, still fills his nose. However, the news of two new whelplings coming into the world, has brought Kooresh back to Warfang. "...but I heard the news that Spyro and Cynder's already had their baby, and that Terrador's child should be hatching soon, so I had to comeback and see."

"It sounds like Terrador and Skylar's hatched only a few moments ago." Scythe smiles, as he quickly pictures the other whelp born two month earlier.

"And my sister had a little girl two months ago..." he pauses for a second, suddenly realizing who he is talking to, and how the name of this child will rock him to his core. He reaches up a paw, placing it on Kooresh's chest. "...and her name is Faith, my friend."

Hundreds of memories, good and bad, race through a former father's mind, seeing the girl he raised in his mind's eye.

"As in... _my_ _Faith_?"

The question is hard for him to ask, as humility grasps Kooresh by the throat. And with a simple nod from the two dragons, the colossus collapses to his stomach, completely speechless by what he has heard.

Scythe, now having a captive audience of one, begins to talk about his newest favorite subject, describing the little pink dragoness that will honor his friend's daughter for the rest of her days.

* * *

Hours later, up in the large Rookery, nearly two dozen dragons and a flock of dragonflies, have gathered to see the newest citizen of Warfang, and find out what name will be given to their new crown princess.

They anxiously crowd in closer to Momma, hoping to get their first glimpse of the tiny blue-green dragoness.

Skylar, whom cannot remove the smile from her face, lifts a wing, exposing her tiny sleeping daughter to the world.

"By the Ancestors!" and "She is so adorable!" is quickly heard throughout the room, followed by a loud resounding 'aww', especially as the little girl opens her eyes for them. The tiny hatchling begins yelping with fear, seeing so many new faces, which only makes everyone 'aww' louder, forcing Skylar to cover her child again.

The young girl, immediately feeling the security under momma's wing, stops crying, and within a few seconds, she falls back to sleep.

"Your daughter is a very beautiful young lady, Ms Skylar..." Cyril remarks, a great big grin on his face as even he is warmed by the sight of another new child. However, that joy is disrupted as his motor-mouthed friend cuts in with his thoughts.

"Yes indeed, a beautiful child she is, Ms. Skylar...the most beautiful baby I've seen in a long long while..." Volteer, pauses for a second, noticing Spyro and his wife, whom holds her young daughter, are standing next to him. "...that is except yours, Ms, Cynder...your daughter is just as beautiful, if not more so because...ahhh..."

Volteer stops again seeing the angered look he is getting from the one who provided his powerful lineage to make the young dragoness everyone has come to honor.

"Because... _WHAT_!?" Terrador grunts, forcing Volteer to swallow his saliva and think of his next words more carefully, instead of just spewing them out like normal.

"What I was going to say was..."

"That's a question you should _not_ answer, you Lightheaded Dimwit, so stop while you're _behind_." Cyril interrupts, yanking his friend back into the group, and out of the Earth guardian's line of sight.

"What he was going to say was... Congratulations, Master Terrador, to you and to your lovely wife."

The Ice guardian escorts the embarrassed electric breather away, and everyone gives a laugh.

"Wow! And you thought I said the stupidest things, Bro." Sparx blurts, looking down at his brother from his right horn with humor in his eyes.

Spyro nods, agreeing with him, however, Cynder cannot help but let out the only thought that comes to her mind.

"Well... the day is far from over, Sparx."

Spyro chuckles as his love starts in on his older brother again, and in an instant the yellow dragonfly is annoyed. He zips down in front of Cynder's nose, pointing a finger in her face.

"Listen! Spikes! I'm not gonna start a battle of wits with and unarmed dragon, so don't push meeeee..."

Sparx, forgetting that Faith is still sitting in her mom's paws, is abruptly swatted from the sky once again. The entire room lights up with laughter, making the yellow dragonfly get up and leave the room with none of his dignity intact.

However, before he leaves, the small insect buzzes over to his younger dragon brother, an angered look on his face.

"I'm going to get you back for this." He looks over at Faith, whom seems upset that she hit him again, but he smiles to keep her from crying.

"I don't know what I'm going to do to your daddy...yet." He says in a funny voice, putting a smile on his niece's face. He then looks at her father with the same fake smile, putting Spyro on edge as his voice stays high-pitched, like he is talking to a baby. "But I promise you are not going to like it...and you will not know when it will happen either, little brother."

With several soft taps to Spyro's nose, Sparx flies out of the room to calm himself down, leaving a concerned purple dragon to guess about his future.

"I wonder what crazy thing he'll do to you this time, Honey?" Cynder asks with a smirk, caressing her baby softly against her chest, recalling some of the many pranks Sparx has played on her husband this month alone.

"I don't know..." he says, lifting his right paw, showing several black marks on his arm as well as the faded ring around his wrist. "...but I'm still trying to remove the permanent dye he put on the inside of my Fury armor."

Spyro stares at his wife as she laughs in his face, just like she did when he removed his tainted helmet a few weeks ago.

"Well, at least, you don't look like a raccoon anymore."

The entire Rookery laughs, recalling the week Spyro had a black mask of ink across his eyes. The purple dragon also chuckles, as he takes all of Sparx's pranks in stride, especially since he has pulled some childish stunts on the yellow dragonfly himself.

"Well, he only did that after you glued his wings together, Sweetie." Nina chimes in, bringing up more of the most recent round of pranks her boys have played on each other.

She is followed quickly by her husband Flash.

"Yeah, but that was cause Sparx chained Spyro's horns to the floor the night before..." the blue dragonfly adds, getting more laughter from everyone in the room, hearing about the childish way their hero acts at home. The group gets even louder when Flash divulges a secret that only he knows, and the reason why these two brothers are always poking fun at each other.

"...and, if I'm not mistaken, _you_ were the one who gave Sparx the chain, Sweetheart."

Nina's eyes open wide, as do Spyro's, whom gives his enabling mom a very funny look.

"Well I guess I know who your favorite is now, huh Ma!" he remarks sarcastically, stepping over to his biological mother, and draping a wing over her back. "It's a good thing I have my other mother here, who will now tell everyone in this room who _her_ favorite is."

Skylar nods her head up and down. At the same time, Blake, whom sits between his mom and his big brother, points a talon at the dragon who helped raise him.

"That's easy..." he says matter of factually, looking upon the dragon that saved the world with a stupid grin "... _Cyrus_ is mom's favorite!"

Again the room fills with laughter, as Skylar shakes her head up and down for a moment, then quickly grasps the former baby of the family.

"I'm kidding... You know you are just as special to me as your brothers." Skylar hugs her youngest son, while looking at Cyrus with a funny smirk.

 _You're still my favorite._

She only mouths the words, but everyone watching her laughs, including Blake who knows she is just playing. He is positive that _he_ is the favorite...or at least he was.

The youngest son quickly turns his cheek from his mother's chest and looks out at the group that has gathered for this momentous occasion, before singling out his big brothers.

"Actually, the three of us are now tied for second..." the young blue dragon pauses, looking down at the wing his mother has not moved since laying it upon her baby daughter. "...cause _she_ is the _baby_...and mom's new favorite."

Skylar kisses the top of her son's head and squeezes him tighter. She places him down beside Cyrus, whom lowers a wing around his little brother.

"Trust me, buddy... You are still her baby, just like I am still her baby." he confessess in Blake's ear, seeing a genuine look of fear in his little brother's eyes, believing he has lost this special title. Cyrus looks up at his mom, knowing how she has never made him feel less loved, then turns to Spyro and grins.

"Hell, even this _old_ purple dragon is her baby, and he's the one that just made her a _grandma_!"

The room laughs, but Cyrus keeps a straight face as he looks up to his mother.

"And I'm sure we will remain that way, in her eyes, well into our hundreds."

Skylar smiles wide for all three of her boys, then looks around at everyone else in the room.

"Wow, It's really hard _not_ to call him the favorite...Isn't it?" Nina asks with a great deal of sarcasm, and Skylar nods her head. This draws a grin from Spyro and Cyrus, but a scowl from Blake.

"Oh great... Thanks, Ma!" her youngest son remarks with a bit of anger, especially as Cyrus whispers something else in his ear. "Now he's gonna be even more unbearable then he ever was."

The atmosphere remains festive and joyful as this large family of dragons and dragonflies, tied together by a special bond with Spyro, await one last member to arrive. And, much like his sister, the black dragon is humble and apologetic when he walks in.

"I'm so sorry for being late, Ms Skylar, but I was not going to leave your home unfinished." He says with a tone of fear, hoping he has not upset her. He bows to the new Queen of Warfang, taking her paw and gently kissing it.

The Shadow dragon then looks to her husband, who rules him, and just shakes his head.

"I would apologize to you Master Terrador, but this is _your_ fault!"

" _My_ Fault!?" the Head Guardian returns, looking upon his newest comrade with a curious gaze, wondering why he would be the reason for the Shadow Master's tardiness. However, annoyed that he missed most of the party, Scythe quickly answers Terrador with a high level of sass.

"For not making your damn mind up sooner about the designs of the nursery, forcing Cobalt and myself to rush a project that warrants a delicate touch. But mostly, for making me miss the big moment and..." he pauses his rant and looks around the room, realizing he has yet to see the little darling. His anger disappears and a rather odd smile fills his muzzle as he returns his eyes to momma. "...speaking of the little princess...where is she? Can I see her?"

Skylar slowly lifts her wing, exposing the tiny blue-green whelpling once more.

"By the ancestors..." he whispers so softly, making sure his voice doesn't wake the sleeping angel, but it does. And as she did before, the young whelpling whimpers with fear upon seeing the large black dragon. However, unlike before, Scythe calms the little girl with just his smile and a soft shadowy paw to her cheek.

"She is beautiful, Ms Skylar." he says and the baby's giant green eyes look up toward the soft voice above, melting all of Scythe's remaining rage. He rubs the child's head with a single talon, making her giggle, before allowing momma to cover her prize once more.

The black dragon then looks at Terrador, whose eyes mirror the young hatching's in both appearance and innocence. And with the anger he had long faded, his sarcastic side returns front and center.

"I don't understand how this _ugly_ dragon had a part in making that _adorable_ child?"

The room laughs along with the joke, as does Terrador, whom stretches his wing out to cover the Shadow Guardian. He lays and elbow into the right flank of his newest best friend, as Scythe and the ruler of Warfang found many things in common with one another over the year. Not to mention how influential Scythe was in putting the former couple back together.

"Boys!" Skylar's slightly strict tone holds the Earth dragon from laying another potent blow into the black dragon's ribs, drawing both their attentions to her. "You two can play outside later, with the rest of the children, but right now we still have something important to get to."

"Sorry, Sweetheart!"

"Sorry, Ma'am!"

Both dragons straighten up and stand at attention, proving to everyone in the room who the real ruler of the family is. However, as Scythe separates from his friend, he swings his tail and catches the Earth dragon in the chops, forcing Terrador to retaliate with another paw to his ribs.

Skylar shakes her head in disgust, but then smiles at her husband.

"You're never gonna grow up, are you?" she asks and his muzzle is quickly against hers. He takes her breath away with a strong, youthful kiss, proving he will not.

Scythe takes his place beside his sister, quickly placing a paw upon his niece's head and producing the same giggle he got before with a few well placed scratches of his talon.

"So... are you two planning to make _another_ before even naming the first child?" the black dragon asks sarcastically, stopping Terrador and Skylar mid kiss, as they had forgotten where they were for a moment.

Both dragons stare out at the group of onlookers with a bit of embarrassment, but the feeling fades fast as everyone seems to approve, including her boys.

"We have come to a decision..." Skylar remarks, then takes a moment to catch her breath, allowing Terrador to finish her thought. His eyes move back and forth from the black dragon he has made a strong friendship with, to the sister who looks and acts just as humble as he does.

"And with this name, we will honor a great Patriarch and brave mother, who lost her life trying desperately to save her child."

Cynder and Scythe know the name they speak of already and a look of pure humility overcomes both of them. The black dragoness suddenly begins to shake nervously, especially as Skylar uncovers the tiny blue-green hatchling, forcing Spyro to take his daughter from his wife's paws.

He pecks Cynder on the cheek while holding her and his young daughter tightly to his heart, then quietly whispers in her ear.

"She asked me if it would be okay to use your mother's name." the purple dragon says right when his mom utters the name 'Jade'. And just by feeling her body warm with strong emotion, he knows the choice is right.

Several tears form in Scythe's eyes and his jaw locks up with a complete loss for words. He just stares at his new best friend, whom never let on that he would honor his mother in such a way, then takes the large dragon in a strong embrace.

"Hey! I thought you were made of _Shadows_!" The Earth dragon grunts, feeling his spine crack with the incredible force of Scythe's hug.

Spyro gives a laugh, still holding his two most prized possessions, recalling the hug he received only twenty minutes earlier from a colossus, as he too was overly eager to show his thanks.

"It's a good thing Kooresh can control his emotions better than your brother...or else I would be in the infirmary." he remarks with a sarcastic tone, hugging his wife from behind while holding her daughter before her eyes. His voice becomes softer, almost talking to her soul, as he recalls a moment in his mind when his mother first came to town.

"You know, when my mom first arrived, you were so afraid of what would happened, and I told you that you needed to calm down and..." The purple dragon laughs again as he draws his daughter into Cynder's chest, holding them both as tightly as he can. "...have _a little Faith_."

She turns around and gives her husband a dumb look that only makes him smile wider.

"I didn't think you'd take me so literally."

"You're so stupid..." Cynder begins to say, but her words are silenced by his lips, which takes her breath away. And in that moment, the black dragoness rights her thoughts, confessing what she really meant to say.

"...and I love you for it."

THE END

* * *

 **I truly hope you enjoyed the ride and maybe someday we can start another journey.**

 **I wanna thank everyone who reviewed and helped make this story better.** **Over 10,000 hits and 120 reviews in less than a year is awesome. Considering my first story has twice the chapters and only 19K hits, not to mention a fraction of the people who reviewed, I realize I had a good amount of followers on this one.** **So again I say thank you to my fans,** **It's because of you that I am where I am...at the finish line.**

 **Not Marge...my Beta and _sis,_ DragonMaster000, ****HolyCross9, Dragon-Uprising,** **MCZ (though I could never reply to your reviews), Robert Madden, Folwod, V-SxC, Game Guy95, The Weir brothers, Vinyl Skg-Lck, Slipe, Xbox gamer, Dragon of Mystery, Edwin Borelli, Smauoggle, GhostChris, Meowstic Luvva...and other guests, you guys gave me encouraging words that kept me going all the way to THE END.**

 **:) RR**

 **Remember...I own nothing, so if you feel inspired and wish to continue this story...FEEL FREE**

 **Long live Spyro and his beautiful wife Cynder**


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